
FT MEADE 

GenCol 1 


/. » i f *••... / ' » < / 


fcn M 


• * i ’4 i 


* f I ■ ' t , ». < * / t i, 

• * »’• ■ ■ - * ' /V. ‘ * »*'(•• « -• 

< < • • r 1 < } » « ) . ■ f , 

. f *. . , r / ; ■ * < r ‘ 


■(:. * . • i 


r. • • < ; 


/. / < . . . J X 


' / '• l . • *• . « .» • . 

< ! ,• . , / •. f ' ; V . • V 

* . * . V • • ' . . 


; J * .*• . . »' * f * ' r •- i » • * ■ ' 

iH , < < ' t * .< I f 1 * • - \ * ■ , . • > 

i f . •' « , r • , , t . i . ... u i „• v 

( ‘ »' ' | « • ‘ ■ 

. ‘ ■ ■ * • r . i • • • 

t ♦ • . * » v * ■ •• i ■ 

* ■ ; * * . »’ . * . • < • 

• • . • ■ « ■' » . ' < . < 

/ * • •• . r • V ?*•;.» ^ 

' -! • » ' » i S I 


W . ■- ; »c ■ 

i ; 

1 • ■. i .. « 

• < ' ' M • 

:■ v • < j » , 


• l 


i i . , < 

» Y fc ». » 


? 

.. t ' > 


* i 

• , • • 4 


• . . p- 

i 

i ... ■. , < i 

' I f % - 

■ j . 

. « ■ / •> 


• ’ J 

. ■ ’ ’ . f 


» . « 

» , 


( « • • r r 

• j * * • • • 

/ . » > • : 

• J‘ * fj \ • • ' I $ * * 


X • * 3 ( y • « 

* , » r if . • 

M S • * • • ' • 

4 ' X • • • .1 < ? r •! » 


I .. f 




, ;• f 


> ! ' .• * t • i 

• / ; ^ . » ' '* # r, . 

4 * ♦ > ;• * * 

» * » 

. * 4 .* v * * > ’ * '» , 

. . < • » - • • * 


• > f*’. . \ 


» * » 

/ ii , • * 


4.4 I 

• y . * •. 


' ' * i * / ' 

«' » ' I f ’ t 

■ *. ‘ . • i . 


■ ’ ■ 1 ; - 1 J, ‘ • » .■ ' 

• • • 

.... • ’ . 

' . « • . f 4 

* *. 11 » : ' « 

* • * *. • > ' * 


' * >. • * . 

• •;•.••• v - 

• p* 4 * < » J l 4 


; i •”> 

f : 


( ! * I- 




• , 4 

l' * • 

• » I I 

• • » ! 

' ‘ . « 

!' \l\\ 

i . / • •' ‘ 

: f i 


* 


■; ■ ' • • • 

• ‘ ♦ I .} I > I i j t ■ • 

» > i. ' • .f • • , f • • • « ; » 

*« - 4 • ■ * * . I 1 I i 

I * v . « * 


• • 4 

? I « 1 • * 

• . » • / >. 

. 1 t, . v 

• . »*•%■■- ■ • i 

X 4 ■' • 

/ * “l » » • 

Jl ' i • -C ^ 

I I 1 

I ‘ ' 

. » 

• ■* J 4 


t .1 ' t * 

%. f - • " * r 


\ . > ' r »' ‘ ;• V •; ■ 

•<f •; t , 

• »’ ’ 4 » ' * f " ' 

» 

» f * • » ♦ 

, » • > • 4 1 

/ >• l 

« ‘ • f 4 

> 4 • 4 . f 


5 i » ■ . • . 

I •• . 4 . 

. •, V, • 

> • » * ; t r 


/ 

. . , •; ' 

• '' i * • • » 

I . 

< • • « * • • •».'# ? 

' . i ‘ • Ik 

■ r . ‘ ■ 

t * > ' 4 


■ f 


. /• , • .4 

> f . r .. k 


•' o r *> , 

• .4. . • j 4' » / t s > 

' •• ? 4 . 

o . r , * . ' , 


i ■ i 


V ,T ’ 


* i 


: ; . 
» • r . • 


' I 
' '• » 1 


• ■ . 

i < ' 

•• f i 


■ * . 1 


■IV ' 


* ; » , I 


I ’ 


. i 


• ft V 

I ( 


i ' , X .- 


• t • * ‘ t ' • • , f. •> ) 

. ■ » . • *•'•'. t .* 1 / 

•• . '■.,. f ’ , ‘ I '• > 

. *_ ►- ^ v X • • ; • «■ ’ « ' , 1 . 

, : . . , • • v * ' ' x . * • A' - v ,- r ■ 

• .. i 4 - » < * • • » . » » * * : \ 


» * s * . • 

1. ’ 4 4 •. 

j . ’ 4- ' ♦. 


! 1 ' ■ , - 4 « ♦ ' ♦ . { . t 

» . • J • ■ •. * ** i fi 

f ( * I . 4 k » » 


r ^ 


• I ■'* 


x « * V 

« * f** < ■ 4 . 


I " ‘ X k. ‘ 

' 1 ‘ . 


t ' » 1 

,1 . ( » / . 


/ _ 1 | ; 

, . V 1 . 


». * * ' » - ’ I 


t • I, »'«■>. 

■ V 

. r - f '■ *. v ' v' - 


{ . f 


\ \ V • 


1 » ^ f 




.• • j • > 

•- \ £ 

‘ • /. « \\ 

4. ,*1 ,»U . * J. 

I I : » / • -14 

r ; • i < 

'■<i * «. . i* / • ‘ .s 

» r 

:i‘ iT ‘ *’ v •' A 
t ■ ' » , * v • * • 

> 7 . ^ * » r y . . 

. ; . x • * / , 

• , 

• ; , ■, j -. ■ 

«v »«*/.. * i. ^ ■*. 


4 1 > 


* t 

I *■ J • ' 




' ( 4 » 


>. - 4 1 

• 4 


' ii ' 

'll'. 

I 

■ t • < rt 

’ > r | > 

» 1.1 \ 

I » * » ■ . 

\ f i . ;• * f j 

I -r » ^ 

\ I :. i ■ * ? « 

• . « - ‘ 4 ' 1 

. • 

;■ j » *» < -x • 

, - , * > •- 

’ . f * . • : 


f ■ V , " f * , 

4 ' /*. - * 

. * .* ‘ • 

' > I 

’ ' '• . '• . ' 

1 * . * < ■ 


... ' * 

5 < ’ • . * j t • j 

> i • 4 • 4 • 4 ■ , f 

; * *" ■ t -n • 

. f > i ; . x » • x' 

V. > " ' •: - ' 

is >’ -■ ■ / • • • 

• • . yt r . * t . .. •■;,>• • 

• ' * .#.•»(.- • * » 

■ » » » / «. } •■ * 

4 , . . 

:■ 

4 < ».*•*< t 

• •? • ' y « » • V 

-4 ■ : .> ♦ . fc 4 v • 

r " * . • « * _ ’J 


; 4 . { f 


• ‘ " l'. '■ ■» 

i » • l / • 

i .* r- * • > 


*• * * 


>■ * * > 


...... . . ■ X 

» * *: , < x 4 

r * ■ x J.' i 

* 1 4 ' ■ . 

S-, • ' v r ' 

> • ♦ ( i t i 

> * v i ! 

I •• I 4,1 * 


» I a I r f 

i i i » ** :• i* 

* * ^ • » ’ • i ' 4 

A • ■> , 


a I .4 


« • .. 
» •< r < . 


» • . < 

J . ■ » / • 3 * i 

, r ? • * • « f > 

. J • ^ 4 « 

' • •.« >. » »' I 

i < t a j 

* * '• f ^ ' 

' j ■ » * ! • 4 

., 4*1 . f 

«. . • 


y 1 4 i 


« ' » 


* > ; 


t * ; . \ 

• . i 

' * .f* T \ ! , ' , 

1 t i •. 

. 0 x } V ' < f 

• ' <V l' ** \ ' V ' 

* ' -v ' > t' • . 

. I ;* V>-I 


l ( . * * x 

I If 


* /"' i 4 ‘ J* ‘ * . 

»: . > ) • » 

•- I * • « " • 

* \ - • * y 

... * - X • 1 

I • • • » • 

> • • • 

I i » i’ 

)'■■'«■■ V •' 5 i ' 

> • • V - x > 

. 4 \ x 4 1 * * 

* < .. 4 *4 .1 I 

r • • . ■ • i . 

* .4 , - *. ^ 

’ • -i - • •» ; 

• - • ; • V t ' 4 

' • 4 * ■ 

• » • ■ • 


■ I. 

' 


> T • • J. 1 i 

1 k ‘ > I 

4 • l V • 

« * •: ■ i • »• * .• t 

» « I , 

• . . x , . 

» i * • • 7 I . », I 
f 4 ' . » • 1 - 

- . v * ’ ? ‘ 

* ' 4 ' X. ‘ 

’ I *'.} * ' ♦ 

'• . * '■ . > 

■ . ■ .if, 


• * I - : I 

I J * a - * 4 '< 

' , * . t v f * 

?.*•' * 

‘ : V i T . • 

* . »• I . 

• ■■ f 4 * 1 


* * ! 


. i : «. 


4 * v. ’ 


? » . 1 I tl - t 

' i X X . 

‘ 4 ■ 

x • ; • . i, ' 

• * • • w i i \ ■ 


i . 


». * * t 


< * t * • 

4 . * 4 

•U i . > 

' ; ; , « ■’ • 

« V < 

4.1 I 


- . 5 i ■ r t S i 


• . i f I 


;■<*»» » v 



* * ^ « * 

X i -• I * 


' t * ' 

I * ( h i Y I ( ‘ 





*%> ' A 

" • „ A ' ^ ‘ 1 • 

' , 0 ^ 





o V 





4 O 

O A ^ 




r£* ^ • -a k O 

<$> * O N O ° O • / 1 V * 

% *> V s ..... *V <o f ^ 

v ^ a .* 

: :^Ji?o . ( va 










o V 


O * . . 1 * ' aO 



*^0* 


<2> 



♦ *P+. A V 


° >b' ° 

• a v -V * 

* V V ° 



*T1T*' A <*, *©'*•*• <0 


* A 

* Ay? '“Cry • 

« V ^ % 



N O 



</> V^* 1 


,y 

N * 


b V 



9 I 1 


4 O 
o <y 

.' / o 

A u ^ *"•’ / 

ty % » • • / ^ ^ < > - 1 * 0 - <r\ 

“O’ 



«* vx- .A 


b V 


A *VqM/V"* ^ a^ *jA ° ^ A* 



• \$> A v 8 

VV 


' 

l ",% * v, • 

* W • 


- A ^ 

* 4 ? °b • 

* A{a -*.'W/ 

14 A (y ' 



0 * 1 " o A 

A > 






0 o 0 ." 8 ^ 'o 





% ° aS * 

^ A * 

o V 


- * ^ * 

’ n ; <#*, * 



<5>. - o , o 0 ^ 


* # 

9 I* 0 ° A* 

V * * * <>„ ^b. <0 V % lVL'* ^ V” 

. A* »>Va° ^ / .Vdfe*'. ^ A /, 

^' r j> -• ° A^'V 'W^fW.' ,<p^ '^T' 

^o» *^VVi» VV <* '»•** A '••** 

» » o ^ <V , w # • + <P* fy 0 ° N 0 ♦ <0 

* o * y V T , C * ^C s ^vtv-w <,> . o 


* ^ A v 8 




V. V>> A •> 


o K 





^ A 


by 


wv % 

,G < 


o * > 


-f- 


,. 0 V o'’""’ 'O 

~ 0 o 

^ o' 






V 'T.** A <r. '<>.»* J> 

.j? .•A** ^ f <r .•*■ 

* i 

° t^ '« 

* <IA o 

> * ° * o 0 <y o +. , , 

O' **V^ *> V o 

: W **fe ^ 

. • 'N»W> 

* v 1 ^ 

<v '••»•* .0* ^s , VWV 

.>•'•, ,0^ 0 °"°» ^o .A . 


* / •* 


,f V 



<5> 





















A TALE OF NEW 
ENGLAND 
COUNTRY 
LIFE 


fiy HENRY H. BERRY 



HILLSIDE 


A Tale; oe new 
England Country Liee 


by HENRY H. BERRY 


Give diligence to present thyself approved unto 
God , a workman that needeth not to 


be ashamed , handling aright the 
word of truth— 2 Tim. 2:15. 


,,30 3 ■» 3 3 

t 9 5 > 

0 3 3 3 3 1 

) > ■» > 

3 J> 9 »3 3 a 




LOOKPORT, ILL. 

WILL COUNTY PRINTING CO. 

1904 


ILLUSTRATIONS 


Title Page 

1. Hillside (on front cover) 


2. 

The Village Church 

1st Chapter 

7 

3. 

Snow Bound 

2nd “ 

16 

4. 

Old School House 

3rd 

25 

5. 

Molly Ockett Mt. 

4th 

34 

6. 

Speckled Mt. 

5th 

41 

7. 

Black Mt. 

6th 

46 

8 . 

Grist Mill 

7th 

55 

9. 

Board Saw Mill 

8th 

65 

10. 

Tail Race of Saw Mill 

9th 

83 


HILLSIDE 


CHAPTER I. 

MR. JENKINS EXPLAINS. 

DT I TELL, I call that a pretty good sermon/’ said 
VV Deacon Harper to his neighbor, Mr. Jenkins, as 
they went out together from the little church to get their 
horses. 

“Passable, passable,” said Mr. Jenkins, “but it comes 
a leetle mite tough on a man that has walked as well as 
he could in the church for twenty years, to be told at this 
late day, by a young upstart of a minister that he is a 
‘robbin’ God.’ But then, that ’ere text was written for 
them old Jews and everyone knows they’re a tight-fisted 
set of rascals. Why, only this last week one of them was 
by our house with a great big pack on his back. I was 
foolish enough to let him into the house, an’ to stop an ? 
talk to him a while an’ finally he cajoled me into buyin’ 
cloth fur a suit of clothes, tellin’ me that he was givin’ 
me a big bargain. He said it was the best piece of goods 
I ever saw, ail’ he was lettin’ me have it fur about half 
price. Waal, I bought it, and, as I needed the suit, L 
carried the cloth over to Redding to have the tailor there 
cut out a suit, for I thought Mirandy could make it up 
after it was once cut out. An’ what do you think that 
’ere tailor said ? Why, he said he could have sold me as 
good cloth as that was and for less money. Just think of 


6 


HILLSIDE. 


it! And, if they will cheat men when they get a chance, 

I bet they'll cheat God. They might not all be like this 
’ere Jew, but if they are, it’s no wonder to me that the 
old prophet Malachi had to tell ’em that they had ‘robbed 
God,’ for 1 should think they would have done it right 
along, fur its just like ’em. But for that young preacher 
to stand up there ’an tell us that we have robbed God! 
That’s all moonshine; that’s all nonsense. Fur ain’t I 
been a faithful worker ever since I jined the church? 
Don’t I give to the church reg’larly and quite cheerful ? 
To be sure I don’t give as much as a good many, fur I 
can’t. I ain’t able. Don’t the bible say he that pervideth 
not for his own is wuss than an infidel? An’ that’s awful. 
I don’t want to be an infidel, so I try to take care of my 
own family and pervide for them, as the Scriptur’ says.” 

“And,” continued Mr. Jenkins, “he said we robbed 
God by not givin’ to him the whole of Sunday. I think 
I’ve aliers done purty good there. I allers go to church 
on Sunday mornin.’ It keeps me busy though from the 
time I get up till meetin’ time, fur I don’t get up quite as 
early as on other mornin’s, fur a man must rest after 
slavin’ all the week. And then, on Sunday mornin’s, I 
allers salt my cattle an’ card ’em all over, fur I don’t 
have time other mornin’s— and it’s meetin’ time before I 
know it. Then, after meetin’’ an’ dinner, I read the paper 
that I couldn’t find time to read durin’ the week, until I 
get that sleepy I have to go on to the lounge. And, when 
I wake up it is about chore time. Then I do my barn 
chores an’ then read another spell, an’. then go to bed. I 
don’t usually go to meetin’ in the evenin’ unless there is 
somethin’ special goin’ on, fur I live, as you know, quite 
a piece from church. And, time I get home an’ the horse 
put away it is late, an’ I feel sleepy next mornin’ so I 
can’t work so well. So I don’t go much, but I think the 
young Elder hadn’t any call to pint that text at me fur I 
hain’t robbed God.” 


HILLSIDE. 


7 



“Well, well, man alive, I did not intend to start you 
off on a rant like this,” said Deacon Harper, quickly, 
“but you must have been hard hit,” he continued more 
slowly. 

“No,” said Mr. Jenkins energetically, “it didn’t hit 
me, but I was only tryin’ to explain that that text was 
fur the Jews an’ that the Jews needed it.” 


“Well, I think we all need it,” said Mr. Harper dryly. 
“1 think we needed all we got to-day, although it was a 
little close, and I for one intend to practice the truth, as 
we heard it to-day, but I must go on or my wife will be 
around here to see what makes me so long getting my 
team.” Mr. Harper drove off, while Mr. Jenkins and 
Tommy climbed into their cutter and also started for 
home. 

Tommy Jenkins, a lad of sixteen, had been an inter- 
ested listener to the conversation that had taken place 
while they were hitching up their teams, and after they 
were comfortably seated in their cutter and jogging 
towards home, he broke out. 


8 


HILLSIDE. 


“Bat, father, didn’t the minister to-day prove every- 
thing that he said right from the Bible?” 

“Waal, now, 1 dunno as he did; he told what the 
Jews had to do an’ ought to do, but I ain’t no Jew an’ so 
that don’t apply to me.” 

“But,” said Tommy eagerly, “there were a lot of verses 
out of the New Testament and they all seemed to teach 
that we ought to give a regular part of what we earn, 
and I don’t believe you keep any account of what you 
give, and I know you don’t give much, only once or twice 
a year.” 

“Waal, you are a great one, you are, preachin’ to your 
old father.” 

“But, it’s in the Bible,” said Tommy stoutly; “the 
elder said so this morning.” 

“Waal, when I see it I’ll believe it, an’ not before,” 
said Mr. Jenkins with emphasis. 

“All right,. father,” said Tommy, “I’ll make you see it 
pretty soon; but will you do it if it says so?” 

“Of course I will! Don’t I allers do what the Bible 
says ?” 

“You may not be quite so ready to do this,” said 
Tommy quietly. 

“Never you fear about that,” said Mr. Jenkins earn- 
estly, “you just trot out the verses. That’s all you have 
to do. In the New Testament, mind ye, for the Old 
Testament was fur the Jews, an’ I’m no Jew.” 

Tommy relapsed into silence, making a firm resolve 
in his own mind that he would find the Bible verses right 
away to see if his father would follow their teaching as 
he had so confidently said he would. He doubted it some 
for he knew that the preacher that day had said enough 
and quoted enough Bible verses to show plainly that his 
father was not living according to the teaching of that 
sermon. That was the reason why he had been so stirred 
up about it. 


HILLSIDE. 


9 


He kept these thoughts to himself and they soon 
reached home, where an excellent dinner awaited them. 
During the meal farmer Jenkins had to tell his wife, who 
was not very strong and had not attended church that 
morning— and Mr. Jenkins was particular about having 
dinner as soon as he arrived home— about the sermon 
and how he had applied it to them. “But I don’t see how 
it fits me,” said Mr. Jenkins. “It comes a lot closer to 
Black over on the East Ridge, for he never gives over 
live dollars to the church, an’ sometimes not that, while I 
give ten.” 

“But, father,” said Mabel, the seventeen-year*old 
daughter, “Mr. Black does not own his place, he only 
hires it and, besides that, he has a large family.” 

“Waal, what of that? I bet he don’t have a daughter 
that he has to pay out money for right along for music 
lessons as I do,” said Mr. Jenkins quickly, 

Mabel relapsed into silence at this sudden home 
thrust, for she knew she was costing her father consider- 
able for music lessons. But her desire had been so strong 
that she had overcome her father’s opposition. Her rapid 
progress had shown how earnest was her desire to learn 
and she considered the money paid for music lessons 
well spent. 

Her father was not altogether of the same opinion, 
although he was proud of his daughter and her accom- 
plishments. He liked to give her a thrust once in a while 
to let her know the sacrifice he was making for her educa- 
tion. He took as a matter of course the faithful work 
that ehe did every day in the home, and never once 
thought of paying her anything for it 

The dinner was soon finished and in silence Mr. 
Jenkins went, as was his custom, into the sitting-room, 
where he sat down and prepared to enjoy his Sunday 
afternoon’s rest in a large easy chair. On the table lay a 
Bible, open at the place where his wife had been reading 


10 


HILLSIDE, 


it, while scattered around on the table were some other 
books, also the weekly newspaper. Mr. Jenkins merely 
glanced at the Bible and, picking up the weekly news* 
paper, was soon buried in the depths of its varied columns. 

After his father had become deeply engrossed in his 
paper, Tom came into the room, looking for his mother’s 
Bible, for he was determined to hunt up those verses 
that the minister had spoken of that morning and have 
them ready to show to his father when he awoke from 
his Sunday afternoon sleep. He turned the leaves of the 
Bible slowly and thoughtfully, trying to remember where 
some of the verses were. He had not paid as strict atten- 
tion as he would have done if he had thought of getting 
into a discussion with his father. He could not recall 
any of the passages, only the text with its solemn ques- 
tion: “Will a man rob God?” He was not very familiar 
with his Bible and did not know where to look. He 
began at the beginning of the New Testament and 
looked quite thoroughly through the gospel of Matthew, 
but did not find the verses he wanted; then he looked in 
Luke a little, and in Acts and Romans, finishing up in 
Revelation; the particular verses that he was in search 
of seemed to elude his grasp, and after an hour and a 
half of fruitless search he laid the book down with a 
sigh, and said to himself: “Well, it is a bigger job than 1 
thought for. I guess I better give it up.” Then, as his 
father from his comfortable lounge gave an audible snore, 
he said with emphasis: “No, I will not give it up. I will 
find those verses, then we will see if father will live up 
to them, or will he take it as easy as he does now. I’ll 
ask Charlie Moncrief if he knows where those verses are, 
I guess between us we'll find them. Let me see, Tuesday 
night is singing-school night and I’ll go around that way 
and ask Charlie. He is a Christian and knows a great 
deal more about the Bible than I do.” 

“Waal, I guess it is chore time, ’aint it?” asked Mr. 


HILLSIDE, 


11 


Jenkins, yawning and opening his eyes. “Did you find 
them ’ere verses you was a talkin’ about ? I seen you 
lookin’ for them before I went to sleep.” 

“No,” said Tommy quietly, “I didn’t find them.” 

“Wall, I didn’t think ye would,” said Mr. Jenkins 
triumphantly, “fur I never found them.” 

“But I will find them,” said Tommy with determina- 
tion, “and show them to you.” 

“Waal, waal! Let’s go out and do the chores now; 
it’s cold and raw an’ looks like more snow. I only hope 
it won’t come, for it’s nice sledding now and we must 
haul that cord- wood over to the village to-morrow.” 

Mr. Jenkins’ prediction of snow soon came true, for 
before the chores were quite completed the snow flakes 
began to dance and whirl around the barn, driven by 
the stiff northeast wind that was blowing. 

“The wind is right for a big snow storm,” said Mr. 
Jenkins, coming into the big old kitchen after finishing 
his chores at the barn, 

“Well, our Heavenly Father sends the snow,” said 
Mrs, Jenkins gently, “and so it must be all right.” 

“Oh, I s’pose so,” said Mr. Jenkins moodily, “but we 
are having lots of snow this winter, an’ the roads are 
good now, so I hope it won’t be a big storm.” When 
Mr. Jenkins looked out of doors at the storm just before 
he retired for the night he made up his mind that there 
would be no hauling wood in the morning, “Instead,” 
thought he, with a sigh, “we may have to beat roads.” 

The snow was still falling heavily in the morning 
and piling high in drifts, but before noon the sun had 
peeped out and the snow had ceased to fall. The wind 
shifted into the northwest and began with great vehe- 
mence to pile the snow into huge drifts. Fast and furious 
flew the snow all that afternoon, but by night the wind 
abated and the sun rose the next morning clear and 
beautiful over the expanse of dazzling whiteness. 


12 


HILLSIDE, 


A little while after breakfast the slow-moving beat- 
ing road team was discovered coming laboriously along 
the highway, making a track through the ponderous 
drifts. Mr. Jenkins’ oxen and Tommy as driver were 
soon leading the procession. 

At the next farm house another yoke of oxen and a 
driver were added, and Tommy took his place on the 
sled, among the laughing, joking boys and men. Shovels 
were occasionally used in some great drifts but usually 
the steers and oxen floundered their way through and r 
tramping it down, made quite a good road by the time 
the sled with its pole under as a scraper had passed 
over it. 

Half of that cold, clear, sunshiny day was spent by 
Tommy in beating roads. In the evening he started early 
for the singing school held at the village a couple of 
miles away, for he was going around, as he often did, by 
Mr. Moncrief’s and call for his friend Charlie. 


CHAPTER XX, 


“SNOW BOUND.” 

A brisk walk of fifteen minutes in the sharp wintef 
air brought him to the residence of Mr. Moncrief just as 
Charlie was finishing the chores at the barn, 

“Good evening, Charlie,” called out Tommy as soon 
as he was within hearing. 

“Why, good evening, chum, have you started for the 
singing school ?” 

“Yes,” answered Tommy, “and X thought two would 
be better than one on such a cold night as this.” 

“That’s right,” said Charlie heartily, “I am glad you 
came this way, for I was thinking I would not go, as I 
know the road down the hill must be very bad, but I 
guess we can get through.” 

“Isn’t this a lovely moonlight night?” continued 
Charlie. “It makes a person feel almost poetical.” 

“Yes,” said Tommy, “the moonlight is all right, but I 
guess I’m no poet for it doesn’t stir me, but I know one 
thing, this is a cold night.” 

“Come right in,” said Charlie, “I did not intend to 
keep you standing here a moment.” Into the large kitchen 
with its cheerful warmth went the young men. 

The picturesque old fireplace, which had done duty 
for a great many years and still occupied its place at one 
side of the room, had been superseded in the work of 
warming the room by a big, black kitchen range, which 
gave out more heat with a good deal less fuel, but it re- 
quired more work with the axe and saw than it did in the 
days of the big backlog. 

Tommy was cordially greeted by all the members of 


14 


HILLSIDE. 


the Moncrief family, as he came in with Charlie, who only 
waited to give him a chair and then, lighting a lamp, 
hastily left the room to get ready to go to the singing 
school. 

Mr. Moncrief’s family consisted of himself, his wife 
and four children. The oldest was Charlie, a fine young 
man of nineteen years. The next was Viola, a delicate 
girl of fifteen. Then came two sturdy la is, aged twelve 
and ten, respectively. 

“How do you like the sin'ging^school ?” asked Mrs. 
Moncrief. 

“Oh! first rate, first rate,” answered Tommy. “Doesn’t 
Charlie enjoy it?” 

“He seems to, very much,” said Mrs. Moncrief. 

“Why don’t you go, Viola?” suddenly asked Tommy. 

“I suppose there are two or three reasons,” answered 
Viola. “Father and mother think it better for me to 
wait until next year, as I may be stronger then. Keally 
I could hardly walk there and back, as you do, and you 
know Charlie’s colt is not very well broken yet, so that he 
only drives him a little. He is young yet and the roads 
are bad up this hill most of the time during the winter. 
But why doesn’t Mabel go?” continued Viola. 

“She does,” said Tommy quickly, “but she prefers to 
go with some other girl’s brother than with her own. It’s 
a little more fun, you know. Well, I take some other 
fellow’s sister sometimes myself.” 

“Didn't we have a great snow storm ?” said Alonzo to 
Tommy in a pause in the conversation, 

“I should say we did,” answered Tommy with energy. 
“I didn’t get through beating roads to-day until about 
three o’clock, and I started out a little before nine this 
morning.” 

“Well, you did have a hard pull of it,” said Mrs. 
Moncrief. “Charlie was gone most of the day, also, beat* 
ing roads.” 


HILLSIDE. 


15 


‘•This snow storm and the beating of the roads to-day 
reminded me so much of Whittier’s descriptions in Snow 
Bound that I had to get the book andYead it again,” said 
Viola. 

“Who is Whittier?” asked Tommy, “and what does 
he tell about beating roads ?” 

“Why, he was a Massachusetts poet,” said Viola, “and 
being a farmer’s boy, knew about snow and beating 
roads. Didn’t you ever read the poem ?” continued Viola. 

“No,” said Tommy, “I ain’t much on poetry; I dunno 
as I ever read a poem in my life, but read us a little about 
that, will you please?” 

So Viola, nothing loth, procured the book, and open* 
ing it at “Snow Bound,” began: 

“The sun that brief December day 
Rose cheerless over hills of gray, 

And darkly circled gave at noon 
A sadder light than waning moon. 

Slow tracing down the thickening sky, 

Its mute and ominous prophecy, 

A portent seeming less than threat 
It sank from sight before it set. 

A chill no coat, however stout, 

Of home-spun stuff could quite shut out, 

A hard dull bitterness of cold, 

That checked ’mid vein the circling race 
Of life-blood in the sharpened face, 

. The coming of the snow-storm told. 

The wind blew east, we heard the roar 
Of ocean on his wintry shore, 

And felt the strong pulse throbbing there 
Beat with slow rhythm our inland air.” 

“Say, but that is great,” interrupted Tommy. 

“Here is a little more about the snow that I want to 
read,” said Viola. 


16 


HILLSIDE, 


“Un warmed by any sunset light, 

The gray day darkened into night, 

A night made hoary with the swarm 
And whirl-dance of the blinding storm, 

As zigzag, wavering to and fro, 

Crossed and recrossed the winged snow. 
And ere the early bed-time came, 

The white drift piled the window-frame, 
And through the glass the clothesline posts 
Looked in like tall and sheeted ghosts. 

So all night long the storm roared on, 

The morning broke without a sun.” 



SNOW BOUND. 

“That is a good description of Sunday night,” said 
Viola, pausing in her reading. 

“Yes,” said Tommy, “first rate, but where does the 
beating roads come in ?” 



HILLSIDE. 


17 


“Just a little further on,” said Viola, “here it is.” 
“Next morning we awakened with the shout 
Of merry voices high and clear, 

And saw the teamsters drawing near 
To break the drifted highways out. 

Down the long hillside treading slow, 

We saw the half -buried oxen go, 

Shaking the snow from heads up-toss’d, 

Their straining nostrils white with frost, 

Before our door the straggling train 
Drew up an added team to gain.” 

“Well, that does sound as though it had been written 
to-day,” said ^Tommy enthusiastically, “for that is the 
way we did, only we got up earlier than those folks, or 
else our beating-road team was later getting around.” 

“It’s a good description,” said Viola, “but there is 
more of it.” 

“I’d like to read the whole of it some time,” said 
Tommy. 

“All right,” said Viola, “if you haven’t Whittier’s 
poems you may take my book at any time.” 

Charlie came into the room at this moment and he 
and Tommy were soon out in the frosty air, making their 
way as fast as the loose snow would permit, toward the 
village. The lights from the village houses shone out 
away below the boys as they glanced across the valley. 
The moon hanging low in the heavens flooded everything 
with its silvery light and made the landscape look glori- 
ous. The place where the singing school was held was in 
a small New England village that ran straggling up the 
side of a hill, and was appropriately named “Hillside.” 

There were no railroad trains, the daily excitement 
being when the stage from the station seven miles away 
deposited the precious mail-bags at the post-office and 
brought any travelers who might wish to visit this quaint 
old town. Or it might be a son or a daughter returned 


18 


HILLSIDE. 


for a short visit to their childhood’s home, bringing joy 
again to the inmates of the old farm house. 

Hillside did not grow much; a new house was built 
about every second or third year. There were, at this 
time, two stores, one near each end of the straggling 
village. One store had been owned and occupied by one 
man for many years. The postothce was located here. 
The other store had changed hands frequently and had 
been closed a part of the time. There were two cobblers’ 
shops, two blacksmiths’ shops, two churches, a paint shop, 
the village hail, and about twenty-five dwelling houses. 
There were also three small mills, a board mill, shingle 
mill and grist mill. The motive power for these mills 
was water which came from a small lake nestling among 
the hills about a mile from Hillside. The farmers would 
haul logs during the winter to the mills, and then when 
the melting snow made an abundance of power, the logs 
were sawed into boards or shingles. Corn could be ground 
at any time at the grist mill. 

Directly north and away beyond Hillside was Black 
Mountain, so-called because in the days of the first settlers 
a fire had run all over it, and burnt oft the trees, shrubs 
and bush. The surface had been left all black and the 
name had clung to it ever since. There was a plentv of 
small trees and bushes on the mountain now, and hun- 
dreds of bushels of blue-berries were carried off by the 
people yearly. A great deal of the top of the mountain 
was rock, and so the snow would lie smooth and shining 
over that portion of the top. The front of the mountain 
lay partly in the shadow and partly in the bright moon- 
light and the effect was beautiful. Back of this mountain 
the northern lights were beginning to flash and dance and 
leap with ever-changing colors, making a scene surpass- 
ingly beautiful and inspiring. 

East of Black Mountain is a small mountain with a 
very steep face on its west side. The name attached to it 


HILLSIDE. 


19 


is “Tumble-Down-Dick.” West of Black Mountain is a 
very bold, rocky, steep mountain known as “Speckled 
Mountain,” the south side of which is almost inaccessible. 
Still farther west was “Molly Ockett Mountain,” named, 
so tradition says, after an Indian squaw who died there. 
Away in the distance to the west Mount Washington 
reared his snowy head so high that he was plainly visible 
from the hill where Mr. Moncrief lived. 

So, to the east, north and west, on this evening as the 
boys were hastening on down the hill, was spread out 
before them a picture of marvelous beauty. The bright 
moonlight flooding the landscape with its wonderful light, 
the snow glistening and sparkling on the hills and moun- 
tains, while dense shadows lay between, and the move- 
ment and color of the northern lights gave to some of the 
scenery a weird and strange appearance, The boys walked 
on in silence for some distance, seemingly engrossed in 
the contemplation of the beautiful scenes around them. ' 

Suddenly Charlie broke the silence by exclaiming, “I 
wonder if the New Jerusalem the Bible tells about is 
more glorious than this beautiful scene.” 

“I don’t know,” answered Tommy; “1 never read any- 
thing about it in the Bible. Where is it found?” 

“Didn’t you ever read about it? - I think you have 
missed a great deal. The description is found in the last 
book of the Bible. I advise you to read about it as soon 
as you get home, for it is wonderful.” 

“Do you know your Bible pretty well?” said Tommy, 
rather hesitatingly. 

“Not as well as I wish I did,” said Charlie, “and not 
as well as I ought to, Lpresume, but I have read it all 
through once and most through again, and parts of it I 
have studied considerable. Why, is there anything you 
wanted?” 

“Yes, there is,” said Tommy slowly. “You was at 


20 


HILLSIDE. 


church last Sunday and heard Mr. Powell’s sermon on 
giving.” 

“Yes,” said Charlie, “I heard it. It was very good, 
but what of it ?” 

“Well, it powerfully stirred father up.” 

“Why, what about ?” 

“Well, you remember that Mr. Powell brought it right 
down to us that we were robbing God. Father says that 
meant the Jews and not us. I told him that Mr. Powell 
read a lot of verses from the New Testament about giving 
and when father asked me to show them to him I tried to 
find them, but I couldn’t. I thought I would ask you, and 
between us we perhaps can find enough to make father 
give more than he does. He has promised, if it’s in the 
New Testament, that he’ll live up to it, and I want to see 
him do it. To say the least, father is rather near, as they 
talk about.” 

“Well,” answered Charlie, “I think you better come 
up to our house some evening and we can find the verses.” 

“All right, thank you; when shall I come?” 

“Well, let me see, ’’said Charlie reflectively; “to-morrow 
night I have promised to go skating, as there is a large 
place on the lake that the wind has swept clean of snow. 
I saw it from our house to-day and it will be fine skating; 
then Thursday night is our prayer-meeting, and I want to 
be there. Could you come up on Friday night?” 

“Yes, I think so,” said Tommy heartily. 

“All right, then, I will expect you; and come early — 
but here we are at the singing school,” said Charlie. “How 
cheerful it looks on this cold night, but I do not believe 
many will be here. The roads are so bad, but the teacher 
is there, so we shall have our singing-school anyway.” 


CHAPTER 1IL 


THE VILLAGE GOSSIP. 

I N the little village of Hillside there lived a spinster 
dressmaker, commonly known as the “Village Gossip.’' 
As she went from house to house in her work-, hearing 
and seeing a great deal of interest, she felt it her duty to 
repeat it and, as is usually the case, stories never lost 
anything by being repeated. Some people were mean 
enough to say that the dressmaker could not find a man 
who would have her, for “a tart temper never mellows 
with age; a sharp tongue is the only edged tool that 
grows keener by constant use," 

On the Monday morning following the minister’s 
sermon, Miss Caroline Peters — for this was the newsy 
dressmaker’s name— being at home and having finished 
her washing, thought it would be restful to run in next 
door and see Mrs. J ones for a few minutes. 

Mrs. J ones was busy with her washing, but was glad 
to stop and rest and talk awhile. Miss Peters usually 
attended the little church in Hillside and had been .pres- 
ent the day before. After a few moments spent in com 
Versation of a general nature, she said: 

“I tell you, you missed it yesterday by not being at 
church. You ought to have heard the parson. He gave 
it to the church members in pretty plain language.’’ 

“Why, what did he say ?” said Mrs. Jones in surprise, 
*‘Mr. Jones was there, but he did not say a word about 
the sermon, I was not well yesterday or 1 should have 
gone, as we usually all go; but what did the Elder say?’’ 

“Oh, I can’t tell you much of what he said, only a 
trifle, but his text was in Malachi. I think in the third 


22 


HILLSIDE. 


chapter somewhere; but it was about robbing God.” 

“Oh, yes,” said Mrs. Jones, “I believe I can find it.” 
So she took a Bible from a shelf. Turning the leaves 
rapidly, she said: “Here it is, the eighth verse of the third 
chapter, ‘Will a man rob God? Yet ye have robbed me, 
but ye say, wherein have we robbed thee, in tithes and 
offerings ?” 

“Yes,” said Miss Peters, “that’s the very verse that 
the minister had for his text. It did me lots of good to 
hear him preach. I felt as though some of those stingy 
Christians must be squirming in their seats. There is 
that Mr. Jenkins, I do believe he is the closest, stingiest 
man I ever saw. Every time I think or speak of him I 
am reminded of the story I rtad some time ago of a 
wealthy farmer and land owner in England who was so 
niggardly and mean that his place was known for a long 
distance around as ‘Pinch-me-near.’ I am not sure but 
what it would be a good plan to tack such a name onto 
Mr. Jenkins’ place. Do you know, he only gives ten 
dollars a year for the support of the church and 1 give as 
much as that myself. He is a church member and a pro- 
fessing Christian, and he often tells folks he lives up to 
the teachings of the Bible. He won’t be able to say that 
again if he thinks of what Mr. Powell said yesterday. He 
is also real mean in his family, as I know, because I have 
sewed there some. His wife has to go to him for every 
cent she needs for groceries or things for herself, and he 
even keeps the butter and egg money. He could well 
afford to give his wife that money so she could buy a 
calico dress once in a while, without telling him just 
what she wants and just how many yards it will take. 
He has a large farm, free of debt, and a large stock of 
cattle and all the tools necessary for farming, and money 
in the bank besides. I am afraid he is an idolator. The 
Bible speaks of covetousness which is idolatry. If you 
call that religion, I am thankful 1 haven’t any.” 


HILLSIDE. 


23 


“And,” continued Miss Peters, before Mrs, Jones 
could say a word, “there’s Tommy Jenkins, such a reck- 
less fellow, I should think the girls would be afraid to go 
out with him, especially now that he drives that young, 
frisky team. His father doesn’t seem to have any control 
of him whatever. The boy does just what he likes, goes 
when and where he pleases, and comes home any time 
that it suits him. He isn't very respectful to his father, 
either, for he calls him ‘the old man,’ and sometimes 
sneers at his father’s religion, I don’t know as I much 
blame him for that, though, for I think his father’s reli- 
gion is pretty near a minus quantity. Tommy dances a 
great deal and plays cards considerable. He is fast going 
to the bad, it looks to me. But 1 couldn’t help noticing 
rich Mrs. Farr during the sermon yesterday. She was 
scowling as though she did not like what was being said, 
I never knew her to go to much of anything, if she 
thought she would have to pay anything. She refused to 
join the Missionary Society they have up there to the 
church, and she will not attend one of their meetings for 
fear they might ask her to pay something. I have been 
told that if they are to take up a collection in the church 
on a certain Sunday, for some special object, she will not 
be there. 1 tell you what, I was glad to see some of those 
stingy old church members there. I couldn’t help chuck- 
ling to myself during the sermon. 1 don’t believe some 
of them. will be so fond of telling other folks how very 
religious they themselves are, unless they begin to prac- 
tice a little better some of the things they have just 
heard.” 

“Did you not take any part of the sermon for your- 
self ?” asked Mrs. Jones. 

“Why, no,” ausweied Miss Peters, quickly, “I do not 
profess to be religious, but if I did I think I would live 
nearer to what 1 professed than some da” 


24 


HILLSIDE. 


“You better show us how to live,” said Mrs. Jones 
quietly. 

“I wish Elder Powell would preach a sermon about . 
keeping the body pure and also about wasting time,’* said 
Miss Peters. 

“Why,” said Mrs. Jones y “who do you want to hit 
now?” 

“Oh, most of the men,” said Miss Peters energetically, 
“for they sit around in the store evenings and gossip and 
smoke until sometimes it is fairly blue with tobacco 
smoke. I dread to go in there. It smells so. 1 never go 
in, in the evening, *if I can help it. What a waste of time 
and intellect, for they might be doing something better 
and they waste money, too. 1 saw three or four church 
members there the other night when 1 stopped in for my 
mail. There are two or three town loafers that don't 
seem to have much of anything to do but sit in the store 
and play checkers. I don’t despise checkers as I do cards 
because they don’t usually lead to so much gambling. A 
game once in a while is a lire recreation. Put what a low 
aim in life, just to spend their time on a game day after 
day. I hope Mr. Powell will touch that up, as most of 
them attend his church. Put, my, I must be going,” Miss 
Peters added, jumping up, 

Mrs. Jones turned to her washing again after Miss 
Peters’ hasty departure, and worked rapidly to make up 
for lost time in order that she might get dinner ready for 
Mr. Jones, who was the village miller, and the children, 
at noon. There were four children in the Jones family. 
The two eldest were girls, Irene and Florence, aged re- 
spectively twelve and ten. The boys, Walter and Herbert, 
were eight and six years of age. 

Soon after noon the children came bounding in, an 
extra noisy group this day, for they were full of com- 
plaints about school, and all wanted to be first in telling 
their troubles to their mother. When Mrs. Jones was 


HILLSIDE. 


25 



able to quiet them, she learned that the school room had 
not been warm enough, and the children had suffered 
quite a little with the cold. Like the good mother she 
was, Mrs. Jones sympathized with her children and then 
told them of her first school days in a frame school house 
in the woods, three miles from her home. She used to go 
every day, even when snows were deep, and sit and shiver 
in the unplastered room or huddle around the roaring 
stove. 


THE OLD SCHOOL HOUSE.* 

“That was even better than my first school days,” 
saicf their father. “I went to school in an unplastered 
log school house with a big fireplace in one side. We 
would be warm on one side of us and almost freezing on 
the other. I well remember what a sensation it made 
when it was noised around that the school house had 


26 


HILLSIDE. * 


been plastered and they had put in a store, and how 
warm it was there the cold days that winter. The 
seats and desks were made of two-inch oak plank. The 
teacher’s desk was a curious object, in one corner of the 
room. It was high, wide and lofty y and was a number of 
steps above the floor.” 

“We had the same kind of a desk in our school house,” 
said Mrs. Jones, “and after I had been going a few years 
they plastered the inside of the school house and got a 
big new stove, which made the room very comfortable; 
also, they tore away the teacher’s desk and got a table 
and chair instead. The old school house still stands. I 
see it occasionally, but I always feel sad as I pass it, for 
there are no merry shouts of happy boys and girls around 
it now. It has been used as an old tool house for many 
years. 

Mrs. Jones kept Herbert at home in the afternoon, 
but she thought the older ones could endure the cold, so 
they went. 

The children of the village had fine times coasting 
down the hill on which the school house was, perched. 
Nearly every noon and night the most of the scholars 
came down on their sleds, and even the school master 
used to take a turn at guiding the long “double-runner” 
in its quick descent of the hill. 


CHAPTER IV. 

AN EVENING VISIT. 

F RIDAY evening Tommy Jenkins hurried through his 
after-supper chores at the barn, and went to Mr. 
Moncrief’s home, where he received a hearty welcome. 

“Did you say. Tommy, that Elder Powell’s sermon 
stirred your father up?” asked Charlie. 

“Yes, it did very much,” answered Tommy, “and he 
has promised to live up to the Bible commands, if I can 
find them in the New Testament. He says the passages 
in the Old Testament, and especially the text last Sunday, 
was for the Jews entirely, and was not for us at all. So I 
came up here to-night to study up the verses for father’s 
benefit.” 

“Don’t you want to study them for your own sake ?” 
asked Charlie. 

“I don’t know as I care about them for myself,” 
answered Tommy, “but father professes to believe all the 
Bible, and I want to help him practice what he believes. 
I don’t make any profession, so why do I need them ? 
Where was the text ?” 

“Don’t you remember?” answered Charlie. “It was 
in Malachi 3:8.” 

“I didn’t bring any Bible,” said Tommy. “I don’t 
have one of my own and mother’s is most too big to 
carry, and then I knew you bad quite a number.” 

“You can use my Bible,” said Eddie Moncrief, the 
youngest boy, “I don’t need to study it now; I can listen.” 

“Well, shall we begin?” asked Tommy, almost impa- 
tiently. “Where ’bouts is Malachi, anyway ? I can’t find 


28 


HILLSIDE. 


it,” said Tommy, after turning the leaves of Eddie's Bible 
a few moments in silence, 

‘Tt is the last book of the Old Testament,” answered 
Charlie, 

“I never have studied the Bible much,” said Tommy, 
“as I usually would rather study the girls and how we 
can enjoy ourselves at the dance. Charlie, didn't you 
ever go to a dance?” 

“Yes, several years ag'o,” said Charlie, “but I have not 
been lately, for I have something so much better now' 
that I have no room nor desire to dance.” 

“Something better to think about than dancing? 
What is it? I would like to know 7 ,” said Tommy, 
curiously, 

“It is ‘Christ in me the hope of glory,’ and He is so 
much better than any mere amusements that I have no 
desire for them.” 

’ “But you go skating?” said Tommy, in surprise. 

“Oh, yes,” said Charlie, “I go skating often, for that 
is good exercise. Also, I can have the Lord Jesus Christ 
with me when I am skating. I don’t feel as though I 
could ask him to go with me to a dance. You w^ere at a 
dance on Wednesday night while I was out skating; but 
my opinion is, I had the most real, solid enjoyment, for I 
had the chance to help two or three learn to skate. Their 
great pleasure was enjoyment enough for me, besides 
feeling that the Lord and Master was pleased,” said 
Charlie, earnestly. 

“Does your father like to have you go to dances?” 
asked Mrs. Moncrief. 

“I don’t s’pose he does very w r ell,” answered Tommy, 
“but he speaks more about it hurting the horses than he 
does of it hurting me. What does it mean to be convert- 
ed, as you call it ?” suddenly asked Tommy, looking at 
Charlie. 


HILLSIDE. 


29 


“Don’t yon know?” asked Charlie, 

“Well, no, I don’t believe I do,” declared Tommy. “I 
wish you’d tell me what it means to you. I’ve heard the 
word used very often and I’ve seen people get converted 
at church sometimes, as they tell about. Father was 
converted once, and you have been, I s’pose. Father’s 
conversion and yours must have been of a different kind, 
that’s why I want to know what conversion is, as you 
understand it, for I will own I think you have the best 
kind of religion.” 

After a brief silence Mrs. Moncrief said: “What does 
convert mean, Tommy?” 

“Why, I s’pose it means to turn around and go the 
other way,” said Tommy, “but I don’t see as it makes any 
difference in anyone after they profess conversion. I 
don’t see but what I stand just as good a chance to get 
to Heaven as my father does. I expect to go to church 
more by and by and stop going to dances so much. I am 
only sowing my wild oats now.” 

“Tommy! Tommy!” broke in Mr. Moncrief with an 
earnestness that startled Tommy. “Don’t say that. Don’t 
ever say that again. Doesn’t the Bible say: ‘Whatsoever 
a man soweth that shall he also reap,’ and you have lived 
on a farm too long not to know that if you sow oats you 
expect to and must reap oats. If you sow barley you 
reap barley. There are no two ways about it, and if you 
sow wild oats, as you say so carelessly, you will certainly 
reap wild oats. Another thing, you never expect to reap 
the same quantity that you sow of oats or barley. If you 
sow wild oats now you will reap a big crop, a crop of 
sorrow, misery, and eventually death. ‘The wages of sin 
is death,’ Paul, the inspired apostle, tells us.” 

“Now,” continued Mr. Moncrief, “you asked what 
conversion is and what difference there was between a 
converted and an unconverted man. Did you ever read 
that wonderful little book by Henry Drummond, entitled 


30 


HILLSIDE. 


‘The Natural Law in the Spiritual World?” 

“No,” said Tommy, “I never did. I never cared for 
such things. I have only recently begun to think about 
such things as I have noticed the difference between 
Charlie and myself. Charlie acts as though he was happy 
all the time, while I am not, and yet L go more than he 
does and I seem to have my own way more.” 

“Do you think that happiness consists in having your 
own way?” asked Charlie. 

“I used to think so, but I am beginning to think it 
doesn’t always bring it,” answered Tommy. 

“No, it doesn’t,” answered Charlie, emphatically. 
“Happiness consists in letting Christ have his way in you 
and in doing as he says. But I think father was going to 
tell us what conversion is and why we need it, so we will 
listen to him.” 

“Well,” began Mr. Moncrief, “conversion is a turning 
around from going away from God and against His 
wishes, to going toward God and doing as He wishes us. 
There is something more. Christ touches our dead souls 
and we have life, eternal life, within us. ‘If any man be 
in Christ he is a new creature, or new creation.’ He has 
something within him that he did not have before. He 
has life now, spiritual life, the life from Christ and of 
Christ. He has Christ within him, the hope of glory.” 

“Well, I go to church as much as father does, and 
sometimes more,” said Tommy, “so I expect to be all 
right. I am not a great sinner. I never did anything 
worse than dance all night and tell father a lie once in a 
while. But I shall get over these little things and grow 
to be like Christ, if you say that is necessary to enter 
Heaven.” 

“No,” said Mr. Moncrief, “I didn’t say that was the 
first thing. Growth is a necessary thing, but first there 
' must be birth. ‘Ye must be born again,’ the Bible plainly 
tells us.” 


HILLSIDE. 


31 


“I don’t see the use of that; neither do I see how it 
can be,” said Tommy, with a puzzled air. 

“I will quote Henry Drummond in explaining it to 
you,” said Mr. M.oncrief, “because he makes it very plain 
in his chapter on ‘Biogenesis.’ ‘It must long ago have 
appeared how decisive is the answer of science to the 
practical question with which we set out as to the possi- 
bility of a spontaneous development of spiritual life in 
the individual soul. Regeneration has not merely been 
an outstanding difficulty but an overwhelming obscurity, 
even to earnest minds. The difficulty of grasping the 
truth at all has always proved extreme. Philosophically, 
one scarcely sees either the necessity or the possibility of 
being born again. Why a virtuous man should not simply 
grow better and better until in his own right he enter the 
kingdom of God, is what thousands honestly and seriously 
fail to understand. Now, philosophy cannot help us here, 
her arguments are, if anything, against us. But science 
answers to the appeal at once. If it be simply pointed 
out that this is the same absurdity as to ask why a stone 
should not grow more and more living, till it enters the 
organic world, the point is clear in an instant.” 

“Now, Tommy,” continued Mr. Moncrief, “do you see 
the point? There is no life in a stone and never will be. 
So, it cannot grow better and better, because there is noth- 
ing there to grow. There is no such thing as spontaneous 
generation, or life from nothing. If there were there 
could be life from a stone, but life can only come from 
life. Now we are like a stone, in that we naturally have 
no spiritual life, and so you cannot develop anything that 
you have not. There must first be a birth before there 
can be any growth. ‘He that hath the Son hath life and 
he that hath not the Son hath not life.’ The Bible says 
that and it says truly and scientifically. Life' cannot 
come of itself. Life only comes of life, and as Christ is 
the spiritual life, unless he touches us and brings life to 


32 


HILLSIDE. 


us we remain forever dead to spiritual things. It is ours 
to look up and ask Christ to touch us with his life and it 
is His to give us the new birth. ‘Him that cometh unto 
me I will in no wise cast out,’ our Saviour said. But 
there,” said Mr. Moncrief, “I guess you came up here for 
another purpose than to hear me talk.” 

“Well, yes,” said Tommy, “I came up here to study 
the Bible with Charlie. I asked you these questions, Mr. 
Moncrief, and you were only answering me. I thank you. 
If it is true,” continued Tommy, “that we have no more 
spiritual life than a stone has, then, of course, we need to 
have some life given to us before we can grow. For if 
there is no life, of course there can be no growth, but is it 
a fact?” 

“It is,” said Mr. Moncrief, earnestly. 

“Well, I have learned something, sure enough,” said 
Tommy, after a pause, “and that somethin? is for myself. 
Well, I shall have to think about that, but I came up here 
to learn something for father’s benefit. I guess we had 
better get at it before the evening is entirely gone. Where 
shall we begin, Charlie? Where is the first verse?” 

“I don’t know as I can tell you right away,” answered 
Charlie. “I shall have to hunt for a while, I think, or else 
ask mother. She is a regular concordance. I think she 
knows every verse in the Bible.” 

“Oh, no, my son,” answered Mrs. Moncrief, quickly, 
“I only know a very small part of the Bible verses, but 
perhaps 1 know more of them than you do. I have 
studied and lived on them longer. When you are as old 
as I am, you will probably know a great deal more of the 
Bible than I do.” 

“Well, Mrs. Moncrief,” said Tommy, eagerly, “where 
does it tell us in the New Testament that we ought to 
give a tenth to the Lord?” 

“I think there is no definite command to that effect 
in the New Testament,” answered Mrs. Moncrief quietly. 


Hillside* 


“What!” said Tommy, in open-eyed amazement* 
‘Don’t it tell in the New Testament that we must give a 
tenth of our income to the Lord? Why* I thought Elder 
Powell last Sunday had a lot of verses that were in the 
New Testament.” 

“I guess he did,” said Charlie, “but there is no direct* 
positive, definite command in the New Testament that 
we must give just a tenth of our income, no more and no 
less*” 

“What can I find, then, to prove that father ought to 
give a tenth?” asked Tommy* “1 might as well give it up 
and go home.” 

“Wait a few minutes,” said Charlie, “While there is 
no positive command in the New Testament, yet there is . 
a great deal of teaching on that subject in the New 
Testament, although there is a positive command in the 
Old Testament* To understand the New Testament 
thoroughly we shall have to study the subject first from 
the Old Testament standpoint*” 

“Father doesn’t want to hear anything about it from 
the Old Testament,” said Tommy quickly* “He says that 
was for the .lews, and he ain't no dew,” 

“That’s true,’’ said Charlie, “but you must study the 
Jews’ side first, in order to understand our side*” 

“Well, all right, fire ahead,” said Tommy, “and give 
me a few ideas, for 1 must go home very soon, and I want 
something to tell father, for he will ask me about it. He 
knows what I have come here tomight for*” 

“Well,” said C harlie, “we find that Cain and Abel 
offered sacrifice unto the Lord* Thus we suppose that 
the Lord had told them to offer sacrifices* But we are 
not told any definite amount that people gave until % 
Abraham gave a tenth of his subsiance unto Melchizedek/ 
Then we find Jacob’s vow -in the last verse of the twenty- 
eighth chapter of Genesis: ‘Of all that thou shall give me 
I will surely give the tenth unto thee.’ Then in Leviticus 


34 


HILLSIDE. 


we find that God claims a portion of the people’s sub- 
stance. In Leviticus 27:30 we read: ‘And all the tithes of 
the land, whether of the seed of the land or of the fruit 
of the trees* is the Lord’s. It is holy unto the Lord.’ 
This applies to rich and poor alike, for we are told in 
Deuteronomy 16:16, ‘None shall appear before the Lord 
empty.’ The same command is also given twice in 
Exodus. Now,” continued Charlie, “If God claims a 
portion, as he does, if anyone should withhold that por- 
tion, wouldn’t they be robbing God?” 



MOLLY OCKETT MOUNTAIN. 

“I suppose so*” said Tommy, slowly. 

“Well,” continued Charlie, “we are told in Malachi 
3:8 that they had robbed God in tithes and offerings. But 
notice, this money and goods that were offer# -d were used 
by the priests for their support. But God does not say: 
‘Ye have robbed the priests,’ but he says: ‘Ye have robbed 
me, .Jehovah.’ ” 


HILLSIDE. 


“Well, 1 must be going home,” said Tommy, sudden- 
ly jumping up. 

“Wait a minute, said Charlie, quickly. “Let me give 
you a few questions to ask your father. The Jews lived 
under law, did they not?” 

“Yes, I should say so,” said Tommy, quickly. 

“Are we under law or gospel ?” asked Charlie. 

“Gospel, I s’pose,” quickly answered Tommy. 

“Yes, you are right,” said Charlie. “Well, was there 
more of God's truth and the way of salvation made 
known to men then or now?” 

“Why, now, I should suppose,” said Tommy. 

“Well, just one more question,” said Charlie, “and 
then I will let you go. Hadn’t a Christian living now 
with the knowledge of Christ and all His teachings ought 
to do as well, if not better, than an old Jew?” 

“1 should suppose he ought to do more,” said Tommy 
energetically, “and I will see what father thinks about it, 
too.” 

“Come up again in a few days, Tommy,” said Charlie, 
and 1 will show you that there are a great many verses 
in the New Testament bearing on the subject.” 

“All right,” said Tommy, “I’ll be up again soon. 1 
feel as though my head had swelled since I came up here, 
with the amount that I have learned. The greater part of 
it isn’t for father, either, but I must take it for myself.'’ 

“But, say, Charlie, are you going with us on that 
sleighing-parly to-morrow night? We expect to have a 
fine time, you know, with a supper at the Rumford House. 
You know the sleighing is fine and the moon will be full 
to-morrow night, so it will be beautiful.” 

“No, I think I shall not go,” said Charlie, quietly. “I 
suppose you will go.” 

“Oh, yes,” said Tommy, laughing; “I am one of the 
originators of the plan.” 


HILLSIDE; 


“Hut why don’t you go, old man, we are going to haV£ 
no end of fun.” 

“After we have had our next Hible study,” said 
Charlie* quietly* “if you do not understand then why 1 
don’t think best to go, I will tell you.” 

“All right, then, I will wait,” said Tommy, as he 
stepped toward the door. “Good night, all*” 

“Good night,” came from the Moncrief family, as 
Tommy went out into the clear, cold, moonlight night. 

“What a boy he is,” said Mrs* Moncrief , after the doof 
had closed on the form of Tommy. 

“Yes,” said Mr. Moncrief, “but he may get a great 
deal of good from these evenings of study* While he 
didn’t get much that he came after to-night, yet 1 think 
he got a great deal that he will never forget.” 


{ 


CHAPTER Y. 

THE SLEIGH RIDE. 

^TITAAL, now, I s’pose you are chuck full of Bible 
VV verses,” said Mr. Jenkins the next morning, as he 
and Tommy were at the barn doing their chores. An’ 1 
s’pose you are only waitin’ for a good chance to fire them 
at me.” 

“No,” said Tommy, “I don’t believe I have a single 
Bible verse to hurl at you this morning.” 

“What!” said Mr. Jenkins, stopping short in his work 
with surprise depicted on his face. “Why, 1 thought you 
went up there last night to get a lot of Bible verses to 
convince your old father that he wasn’t following the 
Bible. You didn’t get any? Waal, I thought you 
wouldn’t find any. I never found them.” 

“Did you ever look, father?” asked Tommy quietly. 

“Waal, I dunno as I ever did much lookin’ for those 
kind of verses. I was satisfied with my way of doing 
tilings.” 

“But,” said Tommy, earnestly, “is your way the 
Bible way? That is the question.” 

“I s’pose so,” said Mr. Jenkins, “but 1 don’t know.” 

“Well,” said Tommy, “let me ask you a few questions.” 

“Who were the first persons that offered sacrifices to 
God that we know of ?” 

“Why, Cain and Abel, I guess,” said his father with 
the air of one that would say: “You are getting back 
into the Old Testament and I am not interested there.” 

“Well,” said Tommy briskly, disregarding his father’s 
repellant air, “don’t you suppose that God told them to 
offer him sacrifices?” 


38 


HILLSIDE. 


VI don’t know; perhaps so.” ‘ 

“Who was the first person that promised to give the 
Lord a tenth of all his income?” 

“I don’t know; I didn’t know anybody did.” 

“Why, father, don’t you know that? Why, it was 
Jacob when he had left home and was on his long 
journey, after he had seen his wonderful vision. He 
promised the Lord: ‘Of all that thou shalt give me I will 
surely give the tenth unto thee.’ Then,” continued 
Tommy, “you remember Abraham — ” 

“Waal, what’s that got to do with it ?” interrupted 
his father impatiently, “they are Jews and that is in the 
Old Testament. I wanted New Testament authority.” 

“Well,” answered Tommy, after this sudden outburst, 
“I am going to get around to the New Testament by and 
by. We have to understand the Old Testament before 
we can understand the New. As I was saying, Abraham 
gave tithes or a tenth of his substance to Melchizadek. 
Then in Leviticus 27:30 we find that God commanded the 
people to give Him the tithe. ‘And all the tithes of the 
land, wdiether of the seed of the land or of the fruit of 
the trees, is the Lord’s.. It is holy unto the Lord.’ Now 
God claimed a tenth from all the Jews, didn’t he?” 

“Yes,” said Mr. Jenkins impatiently, “but I’m no 
Jew.” 

“I know that, and yet you have some of the charac- 
teristics of a Jew,” said Tommy, almost rudely. “If God 
claimed a tenth, which he did, and if they didn’t pay it they 
were robbing God, were they not ?” 

“I s’pose so,” said Mr. Jenkins slowly. 

“They were under the law, were they not ?” 

“I should say so,” said Mr. Jenkins earnestly. “They 
were commanded to do this and not to do that, until life 
must have been a great burden. I’m thankful I ain’t a 
Jew.” 


HILLSIDE. 


39 


“Then we are not under the law, are we?” asked 
Tommy quietly. 

“No ” said Mr. Jenkins vigorously, “we’re under the 
gospel.” 

“Do people under the law or under the gospel have 
the greatest light and knowledge of God and His will?” 

“Why, under the gospel, I s’pose, for we have all the 
account of Christ’s life and they didn’t have it.” 

“Well,” said Tommy deliberately, “hadn’t people 
under the gospel ought to do as much as the Jews under 
the law ?” 

“Waal, it does look as though we ought to do as 
much at least,” said Mr. Jenkins, slowly. “But come, I 
guess breakfast must be ready, for we have been a long 
time doing our chores. What did you want to bother me 
with all this lingo for? It don’t amount to anything. 
I’m satisfied as I am.” 

“Well, I’m not,” said Tommy vigorously, “and I am 
going up to Mr. Moncr ief’s again soon and learn some 
more about this subject. Say, father, you better go with 
me next time, for they make it a great deal plainer than 
I can. Won't you go?” 

“Oh, I guess not. I am not interested in it.” 

All that day, as Mr. Jenkins was at work, the ques- 
tion that Tommy had asked him in the early morning: 
“Hadn’t we under the gospel ought to do as much as the 
Jews under the law?” would keep coming to him again 
and again. He was forced to admit that we ought to do 
as much, and finally he admitted to himself that he ought 
to do even more. 

Along toward night, under the continued persistency 
of his conscience in bringing the question before him all 
the time, Mr. Jenkins became angry and ejaculated aloud: 
“I am giving more than a tenth anyway. What’s the use 
of all this fuss?” 


40 


HILLSIDE. 


. Tommy, who was working near by, heard the ejacu- 
lation, but he wisely paid no attention to it, only chuck- 
ling to himself as he thought: “Well, it’s troubling father 
anyway, and that’s a good thing. It will trouble him 
more before we are through with the subject, or my name 
isn’t Tommy Jenkins. I wonder if he actually thinks he 
gives a tenth of his income to the Lord. I’ll ask him 
some day by and by, but not now.” 

The brilliant moon came above the horizon soon 
after dark, flooding the landscape with its mellow light, 
so that everything looked beautiful as it sparkled with 
the cold and the moonlight. The great sleighing party of 
the season was to be that evening. Elaborate prepara- 
tions had been made and nearly all the young people of 
the neighborhood had been invited to participate. Some 
had declined for one reason or another. About fifty 
intended to go. The objective point was Rumford Falls. 
They wished to see those wonderful falls by moonlight, 
then have a supper at the Rumford House and then 
come home by a different route. 

J n the bustle of getting warmly tucked in and started 
on their sleighing trip some one noticed that Charlie 
Moncrief was not among the jolly party. 

“Say, Tommy,” called out a young man, “where’s 
Charlie? I thought he was going with us.” 

“Oh, he did think he would,” answered Tommy, “but 
he has a number of excuses. For one thing it is Saturday 
night.” 

“We don’t wanf him anyway,” spoke up a coarse 
looking young man. “He’s a regular muff, one of the 
goody-goody, psalm-singing kind. I haven’t any use for 
him.” 

At these derisive words Tommy came hastily forward 
and said hotly: “A muff is he? A goody-goody, hey? 
He is one of the best and smartest young men around 
ere. You know it and that’s what ails you. He can 


HILLSIDE. 


4L 


swim faster and do more work any day, and do it better, 
than you can. There is nothing you do better, except 
loaling and profanity; and if your father wasn’t such a 
good man and you didn’t drive such a nice team and have 
money to spend so freely you wouldn’t be tolerated even 
in a sleighing party like this.” 

“Oh, well, well, little bantam rooster, don’t get 
excited over it. I don’t know him as well as you do, but 
he isn’t exactly my style.” 



SPECKLED MOUNTAIN. 

“No,” said Tommy, still excitedly, “I should say he 
wasn’t your style. You say you don’t know him very 
well. You ought to know him. He is well worth know- 
ing, but you ought to know enough anyway not to slander 
a good man. I may be a little bantam, but I can lick you 
and you know it, I shall, if I ever hear any more such 
talk about Charlie.” 


42 


HILLSIDE. 


It was quite a procession that finally started away on 
that cold winter’s night. There were six cutters, two 
two-seated sleighs, one three-seated sleigh and two wagon 
boxes on bobs, with ten people in one and twelve in the 
other. 

The prancing horses, the merry jingle of bells, the 
merry talk and laughter and the silvery moon flooding 
the hills and valleys with light, was a scene that one 
would never forget. Over hills and through the valleys 
they went. There were places where the tr^es were so' 
thick and dense that the moon tried in vain to penetrate 
the gloom. Then again, on a sudden, they would be out 
into the brightness, as they followed the road, which 
wound around the hills and over some of them. 

When they were nearly at their destination and were 
driving along at a smart trot, the near horse on a two- 
seated sleigh suddenly shied sharply at a rustling in a 
bush, causing the other horsa to swerve a little from the 
road so the runners left the beaten sleigh track and cut 
down a foot or more into the -snow. This sudden tip 
threw the occupants of the sleigh out into the snow at 
the side of the road. Wrapped in blankets and robes as 
they were, they could not do anything to save themselves. 

The four people were landed in a promiscuous heap 
in the snow. The reins were yanked from the driver’s 
hands by the spirited team. The sleigh was not capsized, 
only tipped. It almost instantly righted itself as the 
horses sped away on the keen run after the other teams. 

The teams behind, when they saw the accident, pulled 
up and helped their unfortunate companions out of tie 
snow. No one had sustained any injuries in the fall. Ore 
young man was somewhat wet with the snow. It seems 
that in the sudden lurch of the sleigh he had fallen face 
down, and with his arms stretched out and run into the 
snow their full length. Another had fallen on his lower 
limbs, thus keeping him a prisoner long -enough for the 


HILLSIDE. 


43 


snow on his face and neck and up his arms to melt. The 
people were pulled out of the snow, climbed into one of 
the wagon boxes and then they went on. 

When the runaway team dashed behind the others 
they supposed that team wanted more road, so they 
speeded up a little, but some one in one of the forward 
sleighs glanced back and was startled to see no one in the 
sleigh that had come on so furiously. Another glance 
confirmed him in his first suspicion that an accident had 
happened^ Soon, however, all was righted and the happy 
company renewed their journey. 

Eumford House was soon reached. After warming 
themselves they went to see the famous falls. An hour 
and a half ' was spent in sight-seeing, then they returned 
to the hotel, where an ample supper awaited them. 

Soon after supper the party started home, for it was 
a long distance back to Hillside. 


CHAPTEE VI 


A DESCRIPTIVE LETTER, 


HE most of the young people were too tired to attend 



A church the morning after the sleigh-ride. Tommy 
Jenkins and his cousin, Laura Warren, who came from 
her home in Illinois for a visit and went with the party, 
were out and were deeply impressed by the minister’s 
sermon. The text was, “Seek ye first the kingdom of 
God and His righteousness, and all these things shall be 
added unto you.” One of the thoughts dwelt upon quite 
at length was a more careful observance of the Sunday. 
He also urged that care be taken to avoid those dutie 
and pleasures on Saturday which would unfit one fox 
church attendance and worship on the Lord’s Day. 

On their return home, Tommy was the first to speak. 
“Well,” he said, “he didn’t say so, but I guess he meant 
us. I guess he thought we broke the Sabbath last night.” 

“Well, I guess we did,” said Laura candidly. 

“That’s all nonsense,” broke out Mr. Jenkins impa- 
tiently. “Isn’t Sunday given us to rest in? What are 
the other days given us for but to work in?” 

Then followed quite a spirited discussion regarding 
Sunday keeping and tithing, in which it seemed as though 
the young people had rather the best of the argument. 

On Tuesday afternoon Laura seated herself to write 
a long letter to her mother in Illinois: 

“Dear Mother: I had a delightful trip. I stopped, 
as we planned I should, one day at Niagara Falls, and 
saw the wonders there. I will not describe the falls to 
you, for you have seen them so many times that any 


HILLSIDE. 


45 


description of mine would seem very tame. But 1 will 
describe some of the other things that impressed me. We 
came through the White Mountains and the scenery there 
is delightful. Mount Washington looms up there like a 
hoary monster, his sides glistening in their snowy beauty 
and as the sun shone upon parts of it, it did look superb 
and indescribably grand. 1 received a warm welcome at 
Uncle David’s and I think I shall enjoy my visit hero 
very much. Tommy has invited me to go up to Mr. 
Moncrief’s to-night with him. You remember Mr. Mon- 
crief’s family. I met the young people Sunday and they 
are very nice. 

Saturday night there was a great sleighing party. It 
seems Cousin Tommy was the prime mover in it and they 
had been planning it for a number of weeks. /There was 
a full moon, which made everything look beautiful, and 
the sleighing was excellent, but it was cold. Cousin 
Tommy and 1 went together in a cutter. There was a 
large company, 1 think almost fifty. It was one of the 
most brilliant moonlight nights I ever saw. We passed 
through some beautiful scenery and I did enjoy looking 
at the hills and mountains, with their lights and shadows. 
I saw the same hills and mountains that you as a girl 
enjoyed. There was Molly Ockett Mountain, wooded to 
the top; Speckled Mountain, that looks as though it were 
about all rocks; then Black Mountain, partly rocks and 
partly bushes. Tommy told me that hundreds of bushels 
of blueberries were taken off the latter, every summer, by 
the people around here. Then we passed close by the 
precipitious face of Tumble Down Dick and I repeated, 
or tried to, that old piece that was in our reading book, 
beginning,‘Ye crags and peaks, I’m with you once again.’ 

The last few miles before we reached Rumford Falls 
the road wound around the hills and along side of the 
Androscoggin River. We crossed the railroad two or 
three times. There was no railroad up there when you 


46 


HILLSIDE. 



was a girl, as it has only been built a few years. The old 
Bumford Falls & Buckfield Bailroad, which yuu probably 
remember, was leased, in 1890, to the Portland & Bumford 
Falls Bailroad Company and in 1892 the road was built 
from Gilbertvilie to Bumford Falls. It is a fine, modern, 
well-equipped road. I rode on it the last few miles 
before 1 reached Uncle David’s and it was very smooth 
and comfortable. They have a fine station at Bumford 
Falls. It is large and commodious, heated by steam and 
lighted by electricity, and it is a union station, too, for 


BLACK MOUNTAIN. 

the Bumford Falls & Bangely Lake Bailroad Company 
shares the station. 1 have been told that that railroad 
reaches the headwaters of the Androscoggin Biver, the 
river that runs through Bumford Falls. Bangely Lake 
is the terminus of -the railroad and the scenery along the 
route, I have been told, in wildness and grandeur is un- 
surpassed by any anywhere in Maine. 




HILLSIDE. 


47 


But, mamma, what names they do have for the lakes 
here; old Indian nanv-s, they tell me, and I should think 
they were. I suppose' they sound all right enough to you, 
but to me they do sound queerly. Lake Anasagunticook, 
Maranacook Lake, Annabessacook, Mollychunkamonk 
and Moosetalucmaguntic Lakes. Think of it! Aren’t 
those names awful V And yet they tell me those are the 
names they go by. I am getting off from my description 
and giving you a lot of history, but I hope it will be in- 
teresting. I tell you, it was a beautiful sight, when we 
rounded'ihe curve in the road and Rumford Falls burst 
upon our view. A little to our left was the railroad sta- 
tion, a little to our right were the great mills — paper 
mill, pulp mill, sulphite mill, electro chemical company’s 
works, electric light plant and some others — and a little 
farther on, just beyond the mills, is the business part of 
the town. Straight ahead of us, as we came into town, 
was the river, with its mighty power of water. Beyond 
the river was the greater portion of the city, edging away 
from the river and nestling against the range of hills 
beyond. There are hills on this side, hills on the other 
side, the river and the town lying between, and the beau- 
tiful heavens with the twinkling stars and the silvery 
moon, over all. Oh, it was indescribably beautiful! 1 
wish I could paint it for you. I was lost in the contem- 
plation of its beauty. Afterwards I was surprised at the 
power and grandeur of the fails and I was also surprised 
to observe how the place had developed. Instead of a wild 
waterfall, with wilderness all around, as it was in 1892, 
now the waterpower is harnessed and there is a city of 
five thousand inhabitants, ail accomplished in three years. 

I believe you never visited the falls, so 1 must write 
a few words about them, for I have been learning consid- 
erable geography lately, some that I never learned while 
at school, and yet I ought to have learned part of it. I 
learned that the Androscoggin River is one hundred 


48 


HILLSIDE 


fifty-seven miles long and that it rises three thousand 
feet above the sea level. Here at Kumford Falls, seventy- 
five miles from tide water, we are six hundred feet above 
the sea and the water falls, in less than a mile, one hun- 
dred eighty feet. There is one fall of a hundred feet. 
The waterpower is immense, enormous, a minimum of 
forty-two thousand horse power. This power is guaran- 
teed in all seasons by a great storage system of four dams 
and one hundred twenty-three square miles of lakes in 
the forest regions of the river head waters. I have been 
quoting from a little book descriptive of the falls, which 
uncle has, for I never could remember all these facts and 
figures. I will quote a few more sentences: ‘This great 
cataract is known far and wide as the Niagara of New 
England; indeed, there is nothing equal to it east of 
Niagara Falls. The power here available exceeds that of 
the three largest manufacturing cities of New England.’ 
Think of it! More power than at Lowell, Lawrence and 
Haverhill, and I have always heard of their great water- 
power. I was surprised and astonished, but why did it 
remain undeveloped for so long, I wonder. I never shall 
forget the wonder and power of the falls, and the beauty 
was so sublime, so majestic, so exquisite, that I have 
dreamed about it since. I never saw anything like it. 
Not even Niagara was like it, for I didn’t see Niagara 
Falls by moonlight, on a winter evening. 

I don’t very often write as long a letter as this one is 
and I will not tire you very often by such an epistle of 
geography and history. Your loving daughter, 

Laura.” 


CHAPTER VII. 

A STRANGE DREAM. 

T OMMY had planned to spend Tuesday evening with 
Charlie Moncrief, in order that he might continue 
his search for verses on Bible giving. Laura heartily 
accepted the invitation to go with Tommy, and after 
much coaxing, Mr. Jenkins was persuaded to accompany 
them. 

Laura received a cordial welcome in the Moncrief 
home and almost immediately she unconsciously turned 
the conversation on the subject of special study. As 
Charlie was not among the sleighing party, Laura asked 
the reason. It was Tommy, however, who replied. 

“I think I know now, Charlie,” said he, “why you 
didn’t go. I rather think I got an idea of it last Sunday 
morning in the sermon. You didn’t want to break the 
Sabbath. Isn’t that it ?” 

“Yes,” replied Charlie, “that’s part of it.” 

“Oh, that’s only a part of it,” said Tommy; “well, 
what’s the rest of it ?” 

“I told you,” said Charlie, “that I would tell you if 
you didn’t discover why before we got done discussing 
this subject.” 

“You better tell us now, it might help us in our 
study,” urged Tommy. 

Charlie hesitated, but finally said: “Well, I will tell 
you, if you really want to know.” 

“We really do,” said Tommy, heartily. 

Being afraid of breaking the Sabbath, was one of my 
reasons, but I have another one, and it is this: I didn’t 
feel that it was right to afford it.” 


50 


HILLSIDE. 


“Afford it,” said Tommy, hastily, “you wouldn’t have 
had to hire a team. You could have gone with your own 
horse and cutter. It wouldn’t have cost you anything.” 

“Wouldn’t it?” said Charlie quietly, “how much did 
your supper and your horse’s supper cost you?” 

“Fifty cents each for people and twenty-live cents 
apiece for the horses,” said Tommy quickly, “but every- 
thing was first-class, it was well worth it.” 

“1 do, not doubt it,” said Charlie, “but it would have 
cost me at least a dollar and a quarter and I did not feel 
that it would be right. We could have afforded it if we 
had thought it was best, but we didn’t any of us feel as 
though it was right to spend a dollar and a quarter on 
one evening’s pleasure, just for self, when I can only give 
twenty-five cents a Sunday for the Lord’s work. It looked 
as though I thought five times as much of self as 1 did 
of the Lord.” 

“I don’t see as that applies,” said Tommy; “isn’t it 
right to spend money on one’s self? Didn’t you and your 
father earn the money? Isn’t it yours?” 

“No,” said Charlie, “it isn’t mine to do with as 1 
please. It is only mine in trust. I am a steward and I 
must render my account to God. The land is God’s, for 
He made it. The wind, rain and sunshine are God's. He 
makes the food nourish me, so that I have power to work, 
so the money is also His, but for me to use wiselv. How 
true the words of the Bible are: ‘What hast thou that 
thou didst not receive ? Now, if thou didst receive it, 
why dost thou boast as though thou hadst not received it ? ’ 

“So you didn’t feel that it was right for you to spend 
a dollar and a quarter,” said Tommy, incredulously. 

“Not for mere pleasure,” said Charlie. “If it had 
been necessary, or if it would have done anyone any 
good, why, that would have been another matter. But I 
can go another time and see the falls a great deal longer 
than you saw them, learn more, and have just as good a 


HILLSIDE. 


51 


time, aside from the supper, as you had and at a fraction 
of the cost.” 

“Well, I wouldn’t be so particular,” said Tommy. “1 
wouldn’t think life worth living if 1 couldn’t go to dances 
and play cards when I please. I think I would soon die.” 

“Waal, I reckon the evenin’ will be gone and you 
won’t have anything done but talking unless you get at 
it pretty soon,” remarked Mr. Jenkins, turning away 
from Mr. Moncrief, with whom he had been chatting 
pleasantly, and looking toward the group of earnest 
young people at the other side of the room. “Here ’tis 
after eight o’clock now, and T want to go home by nine.” 

“Oh, we’ve been learning a great deal this evening,” 
said Tommy, brightly. “We have learned why Charlie 
didn’t go to Rumford Falls on Saturday night, and that 
is right along the line of our study for to-night. He 
governs his life by two or three great principles, while 
my life runs along haphazard like. But, come, let’s to 
the business of the evening for a while,” continued 
Tommy, briskly. 

“But, does the New Testament tell us anywhere 
that we must give a tenth?” asked Mr. Jenkins earnestly. 

“No,” replied Charles, “I think it does not. Neither 
dpes the New Testament command us anywhere to keep 
one day in seven holy unto the Lord. It speaks as though 
it was an established thing that all believers should rest 
and wmrship one day in seven. You do it, and yet there 
is no New Testament command for it.” 

“All right, I didn’t believe it did. That is all I want 
to know,” said Mr. Jenkins, rising. “I’m ready to go 
home now. I didn’t believe the New Testament said 
any such thing as Tommy stuck to it that it did.” 

“Don’t hurry,” said Mr. Moncrief, cordially. “If the 
New Testament does not plainly command the giving of 
a tenth, it certainly teaches it in unmistakable terms. So 
sit down and listen to some of it.” 


52 


HILLSIDE. 


“ Waal, 1 dunno as it will do me any good, but I might 
stay a half hour or so, now I’m here,” said Mr. Jenkins, 
seating himself. 

“Where shall we look?” asked Tommy. 

“Yes, you better find some of the proof if there is any 
in the New Testament, if you want to convince me,” said 
Mr. Jenkins, doggedly, “for I don’t take no stock in all 
your surmisings and theorizings an’ no proof. I want 
the verses for it. The Old Testament was for the J ews 
an’ not for me, for I’m no Jew!” 

“All right, we will give you some Bible pretty soon,” 
said Charlie, “but first I want to ask a few questions.” 

“You acknowledge that the Jews gave a tenth, and 
in many instances more than a tenth, and that God com- 
manded them to give that tenth, do you. not?” asked 
Charlie, addressing Mr. Jenkins. 

“Waal, I s’pose so, judging from all I have heard 
about it, but I reckon I don’t know, for I never found 
any of it in the Bible.” 

“But you remember that God says: ‘The tithe is holy 
unto me, 7 ” persisted Charlie. 

“Yes, I have heard so.” 

“Well, that law was never annulled, or set aside, or 
outgrown, was it? Do we find anywhere that it says: 
‘That law is no longer in force; the necessity for it has 
passed and so the law has ceased to exist?”’ said Charlie. 

“No, I never heard there was anything like that in 
the Bible,” said Mr. Jenkins. 

“Well, then, the law still exists,” said Charlie, firmly. 

“How! Why!” ejaculated Mr. Jenkins. 

“Let me read you an extract from an article by N. P. 
Bailey, to answer those questions and explain what I 
mean,” said Charlie. “Mr. Bailey says: 

‘Now it is a rule, both in law and also in morals and 
religion, that the reason for a law remaining the law 
itself remains. Was there then any reason for paying 


HILLSIDE, 


53 


tithes under the Mosaic dispensation that does not 
remain under the Christian dispensation. If not, then 
the law of the tithe remains in full force unless it has 
been formally repealed. But no such repeal is found. 
The reasons. for paying tithes under the Mosaic law, as 
well as before that law, were love and gratitude to God 
as the giver of every blessing and the source of all pros- 
perity in business; also, as an expression of loyalty to 
God and to His government as supreme. Then do not all 
these reasons remain and rest with equal weight upon all 
Christians to-day? The Old Testament law required 
supreme love to God. We see it in Deuteronomy 6:5: 
*And thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thine 
heart and with all thy soul and with all thy might.’ The 
New Testament law requires the same, Matthew 22:37: 
Mesus said unto him: Thou shalt love the Lord thy God 
with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy 
mind.’ John 14:23-24: * Jesus answered and said unto him: 
If a man love me he will keep my words and my Father 
"will love him, and we will come unto him and make our 
abode with him. He that loveth me not keepeth not my 
sayings ; and the word which ye hear is not mine but the 
Father’s which sent me.’ Remans 13:10: ‘Love worketh 
no ill to his neighbor, therefore love is the fulfilling ot 
the law.’ So, too, the uses to which God devoted the 
tithe under the former dispensation, remain under the 
present one, and hence the use of it now. As the tithe 
w as the Lord’s He required its use in matters of religion 
and worship. He appropriated it 

1. To the support of the priests and Levites; 

. 2. The supplies for the altars; 

3. To the many other expenses of the temple service; 

4. To help the poor. 

So, now, God still has a church and a ministry and 
requires worship and these involve expense and so He 
demands the payment of the tithe to meet these expenses. 


54 


HILLSIDE. 


The church is the Lord’s and the ministry is the Lord's 
and the tithe is also His and is to be used to support His 
church and ministry. All these reasons for the law of 
the tithe remaining, the law itself must remain. So then 
everyone, old and young, rich and poor, is still bound by 
the law of love and loyalty to God and His church, to 
pay the tenth of his income for the support of the Chris- 
tian church, whether the income is large or small, whether 
it is from land, or from trade, or from salary, or from 
interest on loans and other investments, or from day 
labor, or from any other source. For the tithe is the 
Lord’s and not to pay it is robbing Him and that is a sure 
way to bring down His displeasure, for no man is too 
poor to be honest. Hence, no man is so poor that he can 
afford to rob God and then expect His blessing. Let the 
poor man, and also the rich man, remember that nine- 
tenths of income with God’s blessing is far better than 
ten-tenths without His'blessing,’-’’ 

“Isn’t that good?” said Charlie, drawing a deep 
breath,, after he had finished reading the article. 

“Waal, I don’t see as it proves anything,” said Mr. 
Jenkins, “he only reasons. He don’t take the Bible for it.” 

“Well, I think it is very clear reasoning,” said Laura, 
who had not spoken for some time, but had been paying 
strict attention to all that was passing. 

“And,” continued Laura, “Uncle here wants some 
verses from the New Testament. I have a couple of 
verses that I wish to read now, if you will allow me.” 

“Certainly,” said Charlie, “we shall be very glad to 
hear them now.” 

“Well,” said Laura, “the verses are I Cor. lfi: 1 and 2: 
‘N<5w, concerning the collection for the saints, as I have 
given order to the churches of Galatia, even so do ye upon 
the first day of the week let every one of you lay by him 
in store as God hath prospered him, that there be no 
gathering when I come.’ The revised version reads,’ 


HILLSIDE. 


oo 


continued Laura, ‘“Upon the first day of the week let 
each one of you lay by him in store as he may prosper 
that no collections be made when I come.’ Now, let me 
read a good explanation of that passage, written by Rev. 
Pred T. Gates. He says: ‘The several clauses of this 
Scripture should be carefully considered: 

1. Now, concerning the collection for the saints; 
' this then was a recognized and accepted object of current 
church-giving. It continued, we suppose, so long as the 





THE GRIST MILL. 

need continued, or as long as the opportunity was 
afforded. It was of the nature of a regular object of 
current church benefactions. ‘As I gave order * * so do 
ye.’ The apostle is imperative. The matter is not left 
to the convenience or discretion of those to whom He 
writes. 

2. ‘On the first day of the week let each one of you 
lay by him in store.’ The laying by was to be on the 



56 


HILLSIDE, 


Lord’s day. It was therefore to be an act of worship', 

3. ‘On the Lord’s day * * ’ Regularly and habitually 
therefore, as the income was received. It was to be 
weekly, rather than monthly or yearly, because, as we 
suppose, the majority of the Corinthians received their 
income weekly. The principle involved is that of giving 
the first fruits, that of laying by from the income as soon 
as possible after any receipts. 

4. ‘Lay by in store as he may prosper.’ Proportion- ^ 
ately, therefore. The sum each time laid by was to be 
proportionate to the amount received. 

5. The Apostle does not here command the giver to 
choose a proportion that he must invariably and under 
all circumstances employ. The percentage itself may b$ 
changed with varying prosperity. 

6. The Apcstle commands each to lay by in store on 
the first day of the week, rather than to hand in on the 
first day of the week, obviously because he was absent at 
this time and no provision had as yet been made for the 
reception of the gifts. This belongs to the local coloring 
of system. 

7. Paul elsewhere says that officers must eventually 
be appointed to receive and convey the gifts to their des- 
tination. Now, the system which we commend above, 
exactly fulfills the spirit and purpose of the Apostolic 
rules at every point, divesting them of what is merely 
local. It provides for all current objects of church be- 
stowment, according to (1) Each one should lay by in 
store, as an act of worship; 

According to (2) As nearly as possible at the time of 
receipt; 

According to (3) A proportion of his income; 

According to (4) This itself may be varied with vary 
ing prosperity; 

According to (5) And that he shall deposit this on the 
Lord’s day; 


HILLSIDE. 


57 


According to (6 and 7) With a chosen officer of the 
church for distribution. 

The system is thus designed obediently to meet the 
spirit of the Apostolic requirements. That the rules of 
conduct laid down in the epistles are everywhere 
obligatory, is admitted by all Christians; even where in- 
dividuals or churches are specifically addressed, the 
principle involved in any command is held to be univer- 
sally binding. 

It happened moreover in case of this particular 
epistle, that though it is addressed first to the Corin- 
thians, it is written not only to them, but to all that in 
every place call upon the name of Jesus Christ, both their 
Lord and ours. (1 Cor. 1:2.) 

Paul states thus in the beginning of the letter that 
the rules of conduct set forth in this epistle are designed 
to be universal. In case of the particular admonition we 
are now studying, we have still further evidence of 
universality of application, for the Apostle says he has 
ordered the churches of Galatia to do the same thing. 

The plan of benefaction set forth in this passage was 
employed during the early centuries of the church. (See 
UhlhonTs Christian Charity in the Ancient Church). It 
is evident that the Holy Spirit designed the practice of 
proportionate weekly giving for all objects of regular 
benefaction to be a fixed and authoritative rule of the 
Christian life. It is therefore obligatory upon me.’ ” 

“There Uncle David, there is a New Testament verse 
for you, and I have read you the explanation of it. Now 
what do you think of that?” said Laura when she had 
finished reading. 

Mr. Jenkins, who had sat during the reading by 
Laura of the Bible verses and explanation, with ,an in- 
different, stubborn, almost angry look on his face, turned 
slowly as his niece addressed him and looking at her, rose 
to his feet, and said almost savagely: 


58 


HILLSIDE. 


“I think it’s time to go hum.” 

“Wait a minute father,” said Tommy quickly, “that 
verse that was just read is in the New Testament; do 
you want to see it?” and reaching over he took the Bible 
from Laura’s hand and held it up for his father to look 
at; “there it is, the first and second verses of the sixteenth 
chapter of First Corinthians.” 

“I heard Laura read it. I don’t want to see it,” 
growled Mr. Jenkins. “Why do I need to read it?” 

“1 wanted you to be sure these verses were in the New 
Testament,” said Tommy; “that was all, as long as you 
know they are there I am satisfied. Now 1 s’pose you 
will do it,” continued Tommy. 

“Do what?” said Mr. Jenkins thoroughly surprised 
and aroused. 

“Why, what you said you would, live up to all the 
New Testament teaching on giving ,” said Tommy. 

“Waal, don’t 1 give,” said Mr. Jenkins quickly. “If 
’tisn’t regular subscription, it’s an extra- collection. Then 
I have to give to every social that comes along. I give 
more now than the old Jews did.” 

“But you don’t follow the New Testament,” said 
Tommy doggedly. “You do not know how much you 
give, and you never lay it by in a separate place on the 
first day of the week as an act of worship.” 

“Waal, there’s somethin’ special mos’ every week that 
I give to. A collection for poor people, or a poor church 
somewhere, or heathen in Afriker, or the Indians in the 
territory, or the Niggers in the South, or some other fol- 
de-rol, so I think I follow th’ Bible.” 

“Well, Uncle, let me read you some more of this 
tract,” said Laura. “Here is some about collections I 
would like to read.” 

“Can’t stop to-night,” broke in Mr. Jenkins; “here it 
is a quarter past nine now, an’ time all decent farmers 
were in bed.” 


HILLSIDE. 


59 


“Well, come up again,” said Mr. Moncrief heartily. 

“Yes, do,” said Charlie. “I wanted to say something 
about socials, but I see I can not to-night.” 

“Could I take this tract home with me to-night? I 
would like to read the rest of it,” said Laura. 

“Certainly,” said Charlie, “and any others that I have 
that you want.” 

‘‘Thank you; this will do for to-night.” 

“Well, when will you be up again?” said Charlie to 
Tommy, as the sleigh came to the door. 

“I don’t know. Before many days, perhaps. We 
might next Tuesday evening, couldn’t we, father ?” 

“I’ll come up visitin’, but 1 ain’t coming up again to 
study the Bible,” growled Mr. Jenkins. 

“Couldn’t all of you people come down to our place 
next Tuesday evening?” asked Tommy. 

“Yes, do,” said Mr. Jenkins, evidently sorry for his 
rudeness. 

“Perhaps we might,” said Mr. Moncrief. 

“All right. We’ll look for you then,” said Mr. Jen- 
kins, as the sleigh drove away. 

“Mr. Jenkins does not want to be convinced, does 
he?” said Charlie as they went into the house. 

“I fear not,” said Mr. Moncrief, sadly. “But we must 
be kind and patient, and perhaps by and by the Spirit 
may open his eyes.” 

Mr. Jenkins confided to his wife after he reached 
home, that he had got into a hornet’s nest that evening, 
“and that Laura seems to be as much interested as any 
of them, an’ they are all to be here next Tuesday night, 
an’ I s’pose I shall get some more stings.” 

The truths that Mr. Jenkins had heard that evening 
seemed to trouble him, so that he did not sleep as well as 
usual and he also had a horrible dream. 

He thought he was busy piling up silver dollars. He 
would pile one on top of another until he had one 


60 


HILLSIDE. 


hundred in a pile, and then make a new pile. He had a 
good many piles all made, and was working away hard 
and fast when he noticed a long line of men passing him. 
There were people of all nationalities there. He saw 
Chinese, Africans, Indians and many others. They 
looked tired, hungry, cold and unhappy. One said, “give 
us some food, please another said, “give us some cloth- 
ing and shelter;” another one said, “give us the Gospel of 
Christ which you have.” 

“Yes,” said Mr. Jenkins, “I’ll help 'you, but I can’t 
take off of my full piles. I’ll have to wait until I get 
them all piled up and see if there are a few left, then I’ll 
help you.” Then one that he hadn’t noticed before said: 
“Inasmuch as ye did it not to these ye did it not to me.” 
In his sleep Mr. Jenkins recognized his Lord and in 
terror he awoke. 

Mr. Jenkins was moody and taciturn all the next day 
and he seemed deep in his own thoughts, which were not 
very pleasant, judging by his looks and actions. 

The sermon on Sunday did not tend to quiet his 
thoughts. It was a plain, practical, loving, Gospel ser- 
mon from the text, “Ye are my friends if ye do whatso- 
ever I command you.” The minister emphasized the 
necessity for action, not alone thinking, not alone hearing, 
not alone knowing, but doing was essential to the full 
following of Christ.” 


CHAPTER VUL1. 

AT MR. JENKINS’ HOME. 

Laura never tired of admiring the scenery around her 
uncle’s home. The moonlight evenings were her special 
delight. She had been accustomed to moonlight nights 
on the prairies, but not among the hills and mountains, 
and to her the scene was surpassingly beautiful. 

On Tuesday evening before Mr. Moncrief and family 
should arrive she wandered out for a little stroll in the 
frosty air. She wanted to drink in the wonders of nature 
and praise and adore Nature’s God. While she was ad- 
miring the scene she heard sleigh bells and they seemed 
to be rapidly approaching. It proved to be Mr. Moncrief 
and his family. Greetings were exchanged, the horses put 
away and soon they were comfortably seated in the parlor. 
The wood in the little old-fashioned parlor stove snapped 
and burned away lustily, giving out a generous amount 
of heat. 

“I hear you are a good musician, Mabel,” said Mr. 
Moncrief, “but I have not heard you play yet. You 
had better give us a tune while we are eating these nice 
apples.” 

Apples were raised in such abundance and of such 
nice quality that no evening was spent without a good 
dish of them, and no visitor called, much less spent an 
evening, without having all the apples he wished to eat. 

“Well! that is nice, Mabel. That is fine music. I 
didn’t know you could play so well,” said Mr. Moncrief 
appreciatively, after Mabel had finished playing. 

“Yaas, she does purt/ well,” said Mr. Jenkins, “but 
it costs a sight of money.” 


HILLSIDE. 


62 

“Well hasn’t it paid?” asked Mr. Moncrief. 

“Waal, I reckon so, an’ yet I dunno.” 

“You have very fine apples,” said Mr. Moncrief, 
appreciatively. 

“Yaas, they are purty fair,” replied Mr. Jenkins. 

“We would like to hear a piece played by Laura. 
Won’t you favor us?” asked Mrs. Moncrief. 

Laura believed that if she coul add to anyone’s 
happiness it was her duty and privilege to do so, and 
re-idily consented to play. 

“That is very nice,” said Mrs. Moncrief, as Laura took 
her seat. “I am very fond of music, but I don’t play any 
more; my fingers are too old and stiff. Charlie plays a 
little, but we haven’t anything good to play on. We have 
an old organ, partly out of tune.” 

“1 would like to hear Charlie play,” said Laura. 

“I am better at playing on the woodpile with saw 
and axe than I am at making music on an organ. Mother 
ought not to have spoken about it, for 1 cannot play 
much,” said Charlie. 

“He is a good hand at the woodpile, or tapping trees 
or holding the plow, but I like to hear him play, too,” 
said Mrs. Moncrief, with motherly pride. 

“When do you tap trees ?” asked Laura, quickly. 

“Why, pretty soon, if these warm days keep on. It 
thawed a great deal to-day.” 

“But it is cold to-night,” said Laura. 

“Yes,” said Charlie, “that is just the kind of weather 
that makes sap run, but it takes a few warm days to start 
the sap from the roots. Then if it freezes nights and 
thaws days the sap will run.” 

, “There will be a fine crust to-morrow morning, for 
it has thawed considerable to-day,” said Tommy. 

“If it is bright and clear in the morning I think I 
shall tap two or three trees just to try it and see whether 
they will run or not,” said Charlie. 


HILLSIDE. 


63 


“I would like to see you,” said Laura, earnestly. 

“Well, why don’t you then? You, Mabel and Tommy 
come up to-morrow morning. But you better not come 
very early, because the sap won’t start until late as it is 
so cold to-night. But you come and we will go up to our 
wood-lot and tap a few trees. Bring your sled along. 
Tommy, your new double-runner, and we will coast 
back.” 

“Won’t that be fine!” said Laura, enthusiastically. “I 
never went coasting on a hill that amounted to anything. 
When I was a very small girl I slid down a ridge and into 
a slough, but that was a very short distance.” 

“Well,” said Charlie, “if the snow has not thawed off 
of some of the stone walls we can start up at our wood- 
lot and slide clear down to the lake, a distance of about 
a mile and a half. We can go right over the fences, I 
think, for the snows have been deep this winter. We will 
have to cross the road once, but I think we can do it 
without tipping over, for I have crossed the road many a 
time.” ' > 

“Why,” said Laura, “don’t you go in the road?” 

“No,” said Charlie, “an ordinary narrow sled runs 
better on the crust than in the road. When we slide in 
the road we take the big horse sled. That will run nicely 
and keep in the tracks, but it is heavy to haul back, that 
is the only trouble with it.” 

“We will go to-morrow morning if we can,” said - 
Laura and Mabel. 

“We ain’t very busy now,” said Tommy, “for we have 
our wood pile all cut up; so if the girls want to go, I 
guess we’ll all go along.” 

“By the way, Laura, did you read the rest of that 
tract that you took home the other night?” said Charlie. 

“Yes,” said Laura, “I read it and enjoyed it very 
much.” 


64 


HILLSIDE. 


“What’s that you’ve been reading?” inquired Mr. 
Jenkins. 

“Why,” said Laura, “you remember the tract that I 
read a part of the other night while we were at Mr. Mon- 
crief’s? I want you to hear some more of it to-night, for 
it is along the same line as we were talking about the 
other night:” 

“Observe finalty in this passage (1 Cor. 16:1, 2) that 
the apostle lays down this rule for one reason, to avoid 
the very method of benevolence now current among onr 
churches, the method of collections. ‘Do this,’ he says, 
‘that no collections be made when 1 come.’ A collection 
is sometimes better than nothing. The apostle intimates 
that he would be obliged to resort to a collection if the 
Corinthians should disobey him by failing to lay by in 
store regularly and proportionately as he commands 
them. The collection which the apostle wished to avoid 
would have been precisely such, doubtless, as we are 
accustomed to take. Now, collections the apostle seeks to 
prevent. He wishes to avoid them by forestalling the 
need of them by regular and proportionate giving. Let 
us pause here a moment to consider the objections to 
taking the collections. It is enough indeed that the 
Scripture names it for condemnation. But, the condem- 
nation appears more vivid and reasonable if we consider 
the probable grounds upon which it rests. All bestow- 
ments should be made directly to God, spontaneously in 
worshipful recognition of His providential care and of 
His ownership of all we have. The church is subtly 
inducted into the error that the duty of giving springs 
primarily out of the fact of the appeal and that, if no 
appeal were made, no obligation exists. They are tempted 
to look on all appeals as innovations - of their peace or 
impositions on their good nature. The system so be- 
numbing to the churches has a peculiar reflex influence 
on our denominational societies. It tends to degrade 


tflLLSlDEl. 



fi p 

6o 

them into mere machines for extracting money from un- 
willing churches and of necessity it must tempt them to 
unholy rivalry and jealousy, The system is unworthy in 
that it secures, for God’s service, not ‘the first fruits of 
our increase,’ but any fruits that happen to be on hand,” 
“Well, that is fine,” said Mr. Moncrief, as Laura 
finished reading. “I never heard it better stated in my 
life, although it is about what I have believed for many 
years.” 

Mr. Jenkins evidently did not share the enthusiasm 
of Mr, Moncrief for the tract that had just been read. 


SAW MILL. 

But before he could have said anything, if he had been 
so inclined, Tommy turned the conversation into another 
channel by inquiring of Charlie if he was going to the 
social on Friday night. 


66 


hillside. 


“What kind of a social is it? Is it a kissing social* 
an eating social, a money social or just a social?” asked 
Charlie. 

“It is a social for the benefit of the pastor over there 
on the ridge. They want to pay up some of his salary. 
It is to be at Mr. David Corbett’s. You know they have 
a large fine house.” 

“Yes,” said Charlie, “I know where it is. He has a 
fine place and a large farm, but I hardly think I shall go.” 


diiAPTm ix 

SOMETHING ABOUT SOCIALS. 

T OMMY was ‘not a little disappointed at Charlie’s 
answer and quickly said: “Why not? I wanted you 
to go with us in the double sleigh; we four. We could 
have a jolly time. I am surprised at you, for I supposed 
you wanted to do good.” 

“But I am not sure but that I would be doing harm 
instead of good,” said Charlie. 

“Why? How?’' asked Tommy, in amazement. “Ain’t 
it doing good to help pay a hard working, poor minister’s 
salary?” 

“Yes,” replied Charlie, “if you do it in the right way, 
but there are ways that really do the people more harm 
than good.” 

“Why, what harm is there in having a good social 
time, a good supper and giving so much toward the 
minister’s salary?” 

“How much do you give?” asked Charlie, quietly. 
“Why, as much as they ask/’ said Tommy, quickly. 
“A man would be foolish to give more than he had to.” 

“Do you give that money, or do you pay for what you 
get ?” 

“Well, 1 usually get my money’s worth,” said Tommy. 
“If 1 don’t, I don’t usually go again.” 

“You have been to Lewiston, haven’t you?” asked 
Charlie, as though he had started on a new subject. 

“l r es,” said Tommy, wonderingly. “I have been there 
a good many times. I have been there once this winter.” 


68 


MLLSlDfi. 


“You go into a restaurant there occasionally and get 
your dinner, do you not?” continued Charlie. 

“Yes,” said Tommy, “nearly every time I am there J 
do that.” 

“It usually costs you about twenty-five cents, doesn't 

it?” 

“Yes,” answered Tommy, still with wonder in his 
voice. 

“Well, do you give him anything?’* 

“No. I can’t afford it. It costs me enough without 
making him any present.” 

“I mean,” said Charlie, “In paying for your dinner is 
it a gift that you make to him ?” 

“No,” said Tommy, “I pay him for just what I eat 
and nothing more.” 

“Is there any giving on either side, then ?*’ 

“I should think not,” said Tommy. He sells me the 
Victuals and I pay for them.” 

“Well,” said Charlie, “are you giving anything when 
you pay twenty-five cents for a good supper at a church 
social ?” 

“Well, I never,” said Tommy slowly. “No, I don’t 
suppose I am giving anything, but I never thought of it 
before. But my money helps to pay the minister’s salary 
and he would not get it if I didn’t go and eat supper. It 
doesn’t look as though I was doing any real giving but I 
had always supposed I was. In fact I thought I gave a 
great deal because I always attended all the socials and 
took a girl or two and so left from fifty cents to a dollar 
behind me. But, isn’t there any real giving anywhere 
there ?” 

“Yes,” said Charlie, “there are some who give. The 
people who plan and work for the social, those who cook 
for it, those who manage it on that evening. They are 
giving of their time, of their strength, of their groceries, 
in cooking, of their thought and brain work. Also, in 


HILLSIDE. 


69 


reality they give all the money that is taken in, for they 
simply run an eating house for awhile to get money 
whereby they can pay their preacher, for the money de- 
pends usually on the quality and quantity of the supper.” 

“Where did you learn all this?” asked Tommy, with 
wonder and amazement in his voice. 

“Out of the Bible,” answered Charlie, “and books and 
tracts and by prayer and meditation.” 

“Well, how are socials' wrong? They have to have 
them, for they must have money. If they didn’t have 
money to pay the preachers the churches would be closed. 
I imagine you would be one of the last ones to think we 
had better allow that.” 

“That is so,” said Charlie. “I do not believe the 
churches should close, but many of the smaller ones are 
closed, and just because they have depended on money 
socials to run them and have not depended on God and 
followed His word.” 

“You asked me how socials for money are wrong and 
how we should raise the money if not that way. If you 
care to listen I shall be pleased to explain it to you the 
best I can.” 

“Oh, yes, we want to hear it,” said Tommy. “Fire 
ahead. We are all listening, I guess.” 

“Our minister could explain this a great deal better 
than I can,” said Charlie; “I wish he were here.” 

“Well, I don’t,” said Tommy, dryly. “1 shouldn’t 
dare to ask any questions if he were here, and now I can 
expose my ignorance all I have a mind to.” 

“Mr. Powell is a good man,” said Charlie quickly* 
“and would be glad to talk these things over with you.” 

“Oh, I know he is a good man,” said Tommy, “but I 
am kind of afraid of ministers anyway.” 

“Well, you don’t need to be,” said Charlie. “If you 
knew Mr. Powell — well, you wouldn’t need to be afraid 
of him. But I am going to explain about money socials,” 


70 


HILLSIDE. 


continued Charlie. “I want to say that I believe m 
socials.” 

“You do!” exclaimed Tommy. “I thought you 
didn’t by what you said.” 

“Oh, yes,” said Charlie, “I believe in socials. Socials 
are for sociability, for interchange of thought, for help- 
fulness, for. renewing acquaintances and making new 
ones, for winning people to the church and to accept 
Christ, and not for the purpose of feeding people and 
getting them good-natured while we extract a little 
money from their pockets, making the extracting of the 
money the chief end of the social, and everything else 
subordinated to that. Now, Christ gave us rules for 
church government and church discipline and also prin- 
ciples that should govern all our Christian life. Paul 
elaborates some of them more fully than Christ did and 
explains and illustrates them. But, do you suppose that 
Christ would be explicit and definite about other things 
and in finances leave us to manage and scheme and plan, 
and resort to all sorts of expedients just as we had a 
mind to— to raise the pastor’s salary and other church 
expenses ?” 

“You wouldn’t suppose he would,” said Tommy. 

“Well, neither has he,” said Charlie. “We studied 
about his way the other night. ‘Let every one of you 
upon the first day of the week lay by him in store as 
God hath prospered you that there be no gatherings 
when I come.’ We are going to find out some more 
about God’s way pretty soon. As to the harm there is in 
socials for money: As I look at it now, we are tacitly 
allowing the young men and women to think they are 
giving when in reality they are not giving anything, 
thus leading them away from the Bible method and 
teaching them a great error. As one writer has said: 
‘There is an aversion to giving a great deal of money 
right out. It cuts us unless we first benumb the sore 


HILLSIDE, 


71 


Spot With ice cream and oysters. So, instead of making 
duty to God the all-absorbing motive, we place the ut- 
terly unworthy and inferior motive, “the pleasing of 
self,” not only alongside of, but far above the other, 
practically making the. duty to God of no effect.’ Then, 
another reason against money socials is that there are 
some large families that are poor, or that are not rich by 
any means. If they are conscientious and give consider- 
able to the Lord in support of the church they cannot 
afford to go to every social and if it was a social for so- 
ciability they could go as a family.” 

“If every Christian lived up to the Lord’s way,” con- 
tinued Charlie, “the salaries of the ministers would be 
promptly paid and would be larger than they are now; 
the poor would be provided for; the missionary societies 
could send out double the missionaries they do now and 
a very small church would not need to be pastorless, for 
ten wage-earning families could support a pastor; for a 
true shepherd would live as his people did. Then they 
could give as they were able out of the nine tenths, and 
the pastor the same.” 

“One great thing about the tithe system is that the 
Lord regulates the amount of your tithe or the amount 
of money lhat comes from your tithe, for he can give 
you small returns on your farm and so His portion would 
be small. Or, he can give you a fine oat, corn and hay 
crop, while your cattle and horses will do well, thus 
bringing into the Lord’s treasury a large amount.” 

“My, what a talker you are,” said Tommy. “I didn’t 
know you could talk so. You will be a preacher before 
we know it.” 

“We are all preachers,” answered Charlie, “preaching 
something, but I don’t ever expect to stand in a pulpit 
mid preach. I believe the Lord wants business men and 
farmers who will be true to him in all things, who will 
<ove and trust and obey him, in fact will be good stewards.” 


72 


HILLSIDE 


“What do you mean by good steward” asked 
Tommy. “You used that word the other night and I 
have been wanting you to explain it, for I don’t under- 
stand what you mean.” 

“All right, I’ll explain it, but some other night,. be- 
cause 1 think we ought to go home now. Why, it is al- 
most ten o’clock. 1 did not realize it was getting so 
late.” 

“You, Laura and Mabel, will be up by eight o’clock, 
will you?” 

“Yes, if nothing happens,” said Tommy. 

“All right. Good-night all.” 


CHAPTER X. 

“ON THE CRUST.” 

T HE sun rose beautifully clear on Wednesday morning 
and Laura was in high spirits; with the prospect of 
the morning’s pleasure, which would be a new experience 
to her, but not to Mabel and Tommy. 

After doing up the morning work at the barn and in 
the house they started off across the fields and pastures 
on the hard crust, Tommy taking his double runner with 
him. They soon arrived at Mr. Moncrief’s, where Char- 
lie was awaiting them, having provided himself with a 
brace and bit, hammer, spiles and four tin pails. Put- 
ting the things on Tommy’s double runner they started 
for the sap woods, half a mile away. It was up hill all 
the way so they had to walk, but they knew they could 
slide coming back. The walk in the brisk morning air 
was delightful and they soon arrived at the sap orchard, 
where Charlie proceeded immediately to tap a big rock- 
maple free. 

“Is this a rock-maple?” asked Laura. 

“Oh, yes,” replied Charlie; “we do not tap anything 
else here.” 

“What do they call it rock-maple for?” continued 
Laura. 

“Because of its hardness. It is much harder than 
any of the other kinds.” 

“Well, how do you know this is a rock-maple?” per- 
sisted Laura.' 

“By the looks of it,” replied Charlie. “Do you see 
that large tree off there?” continued Charlie, pointing to 
the right of him; “you notice those buds are large, while 


74 


HILLSIDE. 


those on this tree are small. That is the best way that 
you can tell the trees apart, but there are other ways to 
anyone that is used to it. I can tell a rock-maple by the 
looks of it, for it has a different look than any other 
tree. In fact the trees are a great deal like the human 
family, nearly all alike and yet all different. What a 
wonderful Creator we have.” 

“Yes,” said Laura reverently, “a wonderful God! 
None just alike and yet all nearly alike. Why don’t you 
tap that tree?” asked Laura, as they passed a tall, stately 
looking tree. 

“That wouldn’t make any syrup. That’s an oak 
tree,” said Charlie, keeping his face straight with an ef- 
fort. 

“What is the matter with this tree?” continued 
Laura. 

“We would tap that tree if we wanted vinegar,” 
said Charlie, “for that is a white birch and the sap is sour 
instead of being sweet.” 

Charlie soon tapped another good large rock-maple, 
but the sap did not start readily as it had not really 
thawed out yet. 

“1 think we had better go coasting for awhile,” said 
Charlie, “until the trees thaw out.” Leaving the tools, 
they went to the edge of the sap woods and all four of 
the young folks arranged themselves comfortably on the 
long double runner and started down the hill. 

The crust was smooth and hard and so they went 
rapidly across the pasture and over the stone wall at the 
side of the road. Then into the sleigh tracks and horse 
path they went with'a bump and bounce, but they did 
not tip over. Over another stone wall they went on the 
drifts, their speed increasing perceptibly for the next 
half-mile. Then they gradually slowed down, as they 
were on the level ground bordering the lake. When they 
finally stopped they were well out on the lake. 


HILLSIDE. 


75 


Laura’s eyes were dancing with excitement caused 
by the rapid ride, and her cheeks were rosy from the con- 
tact with the sharp air. She exclaimed with enthusiasm, 
“That is fun! I never had such a ride before. How far 
did we come?” 

“Oh, over a mile and a half,” replied Charlie. 

“Now comes the draw back,” said Tommy. 

“That is nothing,” said Laura, laughingly, “it is good 
for us.” 

“Say,” said Tommy, abruptly, “did you see how lath- 
er squirmed in his chair last night while you were talk- 
ing about giving?” 

“No,” said Charlie, “I didn’t notice him much. I 
was too busy, I guess.” 

“I am afraid father does not like to give any too well, 
neither does he really care to hear a great deal about it,” 
said Mabel 

“Well, I think he will hear more before we are 
through with him,” said Tommy. “I only hope it will 
cause him to change his ways.” 

“We hope and pray it may,” said Charlie, earnestly. 

“I wonder if the sap has begun to run yet,” said 
Laura. 

“It ought to be starting,” said Charlie, “for the sun is 
getting quite warm; and notice the crust is beginning to 
soften up on top Considerable. It has taken us quite a 
while to walk back.” 

Upon reaching the sap-woods again they went Im- 
mediately to the two trees that had been tapped. They 
found the sap dropping rapidly from the spiles. 

“I believe I will tap two more trees,” said Charlie, 
and if those two run as well as these two that I have 
tapped I believe I will go to the house and get some 
more spiles and dishes and tap some more. Our wood- 
pile is all worked up and we are ready to sap it for a busi- 
ness.” 


76 


HILLSIDE. 


“What do you do when these pails are full?” asked 
Laura. 

“Oh, gather it,” said Tommy. 

“That is pretty thin,” said Laura, you don’t eat that, 
do you ?” 

“We have to boil it first,” said Mabel, laughing. 

“Didn’t you ever see a tree tapped before ?” asked 
Tommy. 

“I saw one tapped once, but I was such a little girl 
that 1 do not remember much about it, only that a man 
made a hole in a tree, put in a piece of wood and some- 
thing ran out of the tree, but I never saw it but once I 
believe.” 

“Well,” said Tommy, “to make syrup we boil this 
stuff down. It takes from /twenty to twenty-live gallons 
of this sap to make one gallon of good, thick syrup. The 
first sap is always the best of the season. It is sweeter 
and makes nicer syrup and whiter sugar.” 

“I remember,” said Laura, “although at the time I 
asked my foolish questions I had forgotten it. I remem- 
ber reading about sapping it and seeing pictures of the 
great iron kettles strung on the poles.” 

“Oh, ho,” said Tommy with a laugh, “do you think 
we boil our sap like that? AVhy, it is as much as fifty 
years since anyone around here has boiled their sap that 
way. We have great galvanized iron sap pans about six 
feet long, three feet wide and eight inches deep. I believe 
Charlie’s folks here have three such pans set with brick 
arches. Where is your sap house, Charlie?” 

“Up there where the trees are so thick, just beyond 
those two big spruces. Yes, we have three big pans and 
two small ones for house use. We can boil the sap away 
pretty fast, but there is something a great deal better, so 
they claim, than these great pans. That is an evaporator. 
I went down to Hebron one day early last spring and 
saw one in use. It is about the size of one of our pans. 


HILLSIDE. 


77 


The sap runs in at one end slowly and then in what you 
might call little Hat troughs an inch or even an inch and 
a half wide. It keeps going back and forth, back and 
forth, across the pan, all the time going towards the other 
end from where it entered. Then it runs out syrup. It 
runs in cold sap at one end and runs out syrup at the 
other, and the thickness is regulated by the inflow.” 

“I should think that would be fine,” said Laura, “but 
what’s a sugaring oft ?” 

“A sugaring oft,” said Charlie, “is where we boil the 
thick syrup down until it turns to sugar and we put it in 
little fancy tins or into tubs, or we make dry sugar of it.” 

“But an invitation to a sugaring-oft social means that 
there is to be a gathering of young people and two or 
three gallons of syrup will be boiled down until just be- 
fore it is ready to grain, just at the stage that is known 
as maple wax or candy. Then they put this on snow in 
pans and it is delicious eating. Every one eats all he 
wants, so it is a delightful, sweet, sticky time.” 

“We had better go home now,” said Tommy, “for the 
crust is thawing fast and it will not hold much longer. 
It wouldn’t be very nice up here in the woods if the snow 
slumps, especially for you girls.” 

They slid rather slowly, because of the softening 
crust, down to Mr. Moncrief’s. Refusing an invitation to 
visit a while and stay to dinner they soon arrived at Mr. 
Jenkins’. 

That afternoon Laura wrote her mother. “I do not 
wonder,” she wrote, “that you always loved your old 
home. It is delightful around here. I am having a 
delightful visit. Aunt Mary and Mabel are both very 
nice. Tommy is a good-hearted, pleasant boy, but he 
goes to dances every little while and his father doesn’t 
act as though he cared. Uncle David is rather stingy and 
surly and doesn’t seem to enjoy his religion very much. 
He and Tommy are having a discussion about giving; 


78 


HILLSIDE. 


Charlie Moncrief and his father are helping. You re- 
member his father and mother,— well, they are helping 
in the discussion and in the hunt for New Testament 
verses on giving. I have taken a hand, too. 

“You have often told me about the little church in 
the village of Hillside, where you used to worship, and 
how much it looked like a good-sized school house. Well, 
it does not look so any more, for they have enlarged and 
beautified it and added a belfry and some of a tower. So 
it is a very pretty church. The inside looks very well 
too, and they have a nice carpet on the floor. It was laid 
last Fourth of July. It seems the people purchased a new 
carpet and the ladies sewed it. Then the question of 
putting it down was discussed, for it is quite a task to 
put a big carpet down all over a church. They thought 
it would take ten or fifteen young people all day to put it 
down. As that is an especially busy time of year for the 
farmers they did not want to spare the day from their 
work. At the suggestion of Charlie Moncrief, the president 
of the Young People’s Society, they decided to celebrate 
the Fourth of July by putting down the church carpet. 

“They had a picnic dinner and everyone that wanted 
to went and helped. Mabel was there, but Tommy went 
over to Redding to a celebration. Mabel says that it cost 
him ten dollars and he didn’t get home until four o’clock 
the next morning. I am rather inclined to think the first, 
although an unusual way of celebrating, is a much better 
way.” 


CHAPTER XI. 

STEWARDSHIP. 

^'T'HE snow is going off fast,” said Mr. Jenkins, as 
1 they were comfortably seated in Mr. Moncrief’s 
large old kitchen for their last evening’s study of the 
subject of giving. 

“Yes,” answered Mr. Moncrief, “there are some great 
bare spots in the road now. It will be bad travelling, 
very soon.” 

“You are talking of leaving us soon, are you, Laura ?” 
asked Mrs. Moncrief. 

“Yes,” answered Laura, “I think I shall go home in a 
few days. I have been here five weeks and 1 did not 
expect to stay over three when I came. But the hills are 
so beautiful and I have had such a nice time that I do 
not want to leave.” 

“If you think the hills are beautiful in the winter, 
you ought to see them in the summer,” said Mrs. Mon- 
crief. “You bptter stay a little longer. You don’t come 
this way very often.” 

“No,” said Laura, “I never was here before and I 
may never be here again.” 

“I hope you will,” said Charlie quietly. 

Something in his tone made Laura look at him and 
then turn her head to hide her changing color. 

“Well, Charlie,” said Tommy, abruptly, “are you 
loaded and primed ready to fire at us on the subject of 
stewardship?” 

“I could give you a few ideas on it,” said Charlie, 
“but I talked too much the other night down to your 
house. 1 think father better explain this to us.” 


80 


HILLSIDE. 


“I do not/’ said Mr. Moncrief. “I have not been 
giving it the special study lately that you have. I will 
help some, but I think you better go ahead.” 

“What is the meaning of the word steward?” asked 
Charlie. 

“I don’t know,” answered Tommy. “I never looked 
it up.” 

“Webster defines steward thus: ‘A man employed in 
a large family or on a large estate to manage the domes- 
tic concerns, superintend other servants, collect the rents 
or income, keep accounts and the like. (2) On board ship 
one who has the charge of distributing food and drink or 
of waiting on the officers and passengers. (3) A fiscal 
agent of certain bodies.’ There are other definitions, but 
these are sufficient, I should judge,” said Charlie. 

“From these definitions it is plain that a steward is 
one that is entrusted with another man’s property, and a 
good steward is one that is faithful to his trust.” 

“I see what ‘good steward’ means,” said Tommy, “but 
1 don’t see as it applies to us at all, for we are nobody’s 
stewards. We own our own farms and manage them to 
suit ourselves.” 

“Yes,” said Mr. Moncrief, “most people do manage 
their finances to suit themselves, for most people are 
tempted to say, like some of the people of old that the 
Bible tells about: ‘My power and the might of mine arm 
hath gotten me this wealth.’ 

“Waal, hasn’t it?” asked Mr. Jenkins. “Nobody gave 
me my farm and stock. I got it all myself. I worked 
hard and earned it.” 

“Let me quote the rest of the verse,” said Mr. Mon- 
crief. “ ‘But thou shalt remember the Lord thy God, for 
it is he that giveth thee power to get wealth.’ He has 
given us the strength and the brains to cultivate the land 
aright. These things are just entrusted to us. We are 
stewards. A steward is supposed to have a salary, or 


HILLSIDE. 


81 


what he needs for his own personal expenses. If he keeps 
increasing his personal expenses and indulges in all sorts 
of luxuries for himself and family, and only sends to his 
distant master a little pittance, seeming to think all the 
goods he handles are now his own, what would you think 
of such a steward ?” 

“I would say he was decidedly unfaithful and was a 
miserable scoundrel,” said Mr. Jenkins, excitedly. “If he 
treated me that way I would lodge him in jail pretty 
quick and he never would manage anything for me 
again.” 

“There are thousands of Christians who are treating 
their Lord just that way,” said Mr. Moncrief. “Many of 
the farmers think the land is their own, just as though 
they had made it. If they give five dollars to help support 
the minister, ten cents to foreign missions, ten cents for 
home missions and a copper for Sunday-school, some old 
cast-off clothes to the poor occasionally, that the Lord 
ought to be very grateful to them for their generosity 
and bless them abundantly in this world and in the next. 
Hut instead of that I am afraid He will say to them in 
thunder tones: ‘Will a man rob God? Yet ye have robbed 
me. Ye say wherein have we robbed thee’? He shall say 
in tithes and offerings.” 

“But,” said Mr. Jenkins, “does the Bible sav we are 
stewards? Does it say that the earth is the Lord’s, for 1 
never heard that before ?” 

“We find,” Charlie answered, “that God is the creator 
and upholder of the earth, also the judge and ruler, and 
he nowhere says he has resigned the charge of the earth 
to men. David says, “The earth is the Lord’s and the 
fulness thereof, the world and they that dwell therein.’ 
And again, at the dedication of the building material for 
the Temple he said: ‘Thine, 0 Lord, is the greatness and 
the power and the glory and the victory and the majesty 
for all that is in the heaven and in the earth is thine. 


82 


HILLSIDE* 


Thine is the Kingdom, O Lord, and thou art elahed aB 
head above all* Both riches and honor come of thee and 
thou reignest over all and in thine hand is power and 
might and in thine hand it is to make great and to give 
strength unto alh’ So it seems very plain that the Lord 
owned the land after he had made it, that the Lord never 
has given a deed of it to men, but has only loaned it or 
rented it to them and that the men on the land are stew 
ards and not absolute owners*” 

“But are we told anything about this stewardship in 
the New Testament?” asked Mr. Jenkins, sharply. 

“0 yes,” said Charlie, we tind a good deal about it, 
I will give you a little. Paul shows that only God’s 
blessing can make human effort effective in any line, for 
he says: ‘I have planted, Apollos watered, but God gave 
the increase.’ The New Testament, you see, emphasizes 
the fact that God is owner and giver of all things, 
whether physical or spiritual, but with especial emphasis 
laid on the spiritual* Paul says, ‘The gift of God is eter 
ual life through Jesus Christ our Lord. What, know ye 
not that your body is the temple of the Holy Ghost 
which is in you, which ye have of God, and ye are not 
your own, for ye are bought with a price; therefore gl< r,fy 
God in your body and in your spirit, which are God’s.’ 
We are God’s and all that we have is God’s. These tern* 
poral and spiritual gifts and blessings are ours to use 
wisely and give account of faithfully and minutely. A 
minister is a steward: ‘For a bishop must be blameless 
as the steward of God.’ I suppose that means being in 
charge of Christ’s church and not accounting it his own. 
But this stewardship extends to all Christians. If 
d/esn’t stop with the pastors, for all Christians are 
bought with a price, even the precious blood of Christ. 
Peter says, ‘As every man hath received the gift, so min- 
ister the same one to another, as good stewards of the 
manifold grace of God,’ * 


HILLSIDE, 



‘‘We all have some gifts from God. svtch as life and 
strength, How true the words: ‘What hast thou that 
thou didst not receive T So all that we have is a gift, 
Paul says: ‘God giveth us richly all things to enjoy,’ 
“JBut this passage in First Peter that we have just 
quoted refers to temporal things as well as spiritual for the 


TAIL RACE OF SAW MILL, 


84 


hillside. 


ninth verse says: ‘Use hospitality one to another without 
grudging.’ So the Christian holds all things that he has 
as subject to the command of God, for he is only eiv 
trusted with it, and we are told by Christ himself in 
Matt. 10:8: ‘Freely ye have received, freely give.’ Then, 
also in Christ’s parable of the talents and the pounds 
we see the blessings conferred on those who improved or 
used what God had entrusted to them, and the fate of 
the man who did not use what was entrusted to him. 

“Now after listening to all these passages let me read 
you a few words from a pamphlet by Rev. G. A. For- 
neret. He says: ‘When the Christian has learned and 
adopted for himself the great principle that God is 
owner and giver of all things, and its complementary 
principle that he is God’s steward or agent in the ad- 
ministration of all his gifts, then he will begin to realize 
the steward’s responsibilities, duties and privileges. His 
property is not now absolutely his own, but only rela- 
tively and conditionally his. 

“It is indeed to be used largely in the proper support 
of and provision for himself and those dependent upon 
him, for: ‘If any provide not for his own, and especially 
for those of his own house, he hath denied the faith and 
is worse than an infidel,’ I Tim. 5:8; but God’s portion 
for objects unselfish and not personal— for church and 
charity — will be as large and as definite as possible. 
Furthermore true Christian stewardship does not end 
with simply detaching a generous percentage of income 
for religious and philanthropic purposes and then calmly 
assuming absolute ownership over the remainder. The 
stewardship does certainly impose the reserving of an 
adequate portion exclusively for God’s work, but it also 
demands the duty of intelligently distributing that por- 
tion and the further duty of administering as in the 
sight of God what is left. One duty of stewardship 
well performed can never buy exemption from its other 


HILLSIDE,* 


85 


duties. The true Christian quietly, but cheerfully, takes 
up his stewardship and with God’s help does his best to 
learn and to discharge all its functions, ‘because it is re- 
quired of stewards that a man be found faithful,’ and 
he remembers that the end of life’s little day will soon 
draw near when the Master shall say to him, ‘Give an ac- 
count of thy stewardship, for thou mayest no longer be 
steward!’ ” 

“ Waal, waal,” said Mr. Jenkins, as Charlie finished 
reading, “the Bible does seem to take pretty strong 
ground on the subject an’ no mistake. I never knew 
those passages were in there before, but then,” continued 
Mr. Jenkins, “I allers give to all the collections that are 
taken for missionary objects and everything else unless I 
happen to forget my pocketbook, as I do sometimes, but 
I don’t give much for Missions, for I don’t believe much 
in Foreign Missions.” 

“Christ did,” said Mr. Moncrief quietly. 

“That’s a fact,” said Mr. Jenkins, slowly, for if he 
hadn’t believed in it, He never would have come to 
earth.” 

“And He told us to be, and if we fully realize 
what Christ has done for us we shall want others to 
know what Christ has done for them, if they will let 
Him. To the Christian there are many commands in 
the New Testament that we should obey, but there is one 
that is very essential: ‘Thou shalt love the Lord thy 
God with all thy might, mind and strength and thy 
neighbor as thyself!’ ” 

“Whew!” ejaculated Mr. Jenkins, “does it say so in 
in the Bible.” 

“Yes, plainly, in so many words,” said Mr. Moncrief, 
“God first and your neighbor as yourself, not more, or 
less, ‘but as yourself.” 

“Waal, waal, and I didn’t know it said that. I guess 


86 


HILLSIDE. 


I better go to studying my Bible,” continued Mr. Jen- 
kins, as though he were talking to himself. 

“I think it would be a good plan,” said Mr. Moncrief, 
kindly, for the Bible says: ‘Search the Scriptures, for in 
them ye have eternal life and they are they which testify 
of me.’ ” 

“I believe that,” said Mr. Jenkins, “and I used to 
read the Bible considerable when I was first converted, 
but I haint read it much lately, in fact I don’t know 
when I have read a whole chapter in the Bible.” 

“Why,” said Mr. Moncrief, “don’t you read it at 
family worship?” 

“1 used to,” said Mr. Jenkins, “but I haven’t had 
family worship for many years.” 

“Is that so?” said Mr. Moncrief, you don’t know 
what a blessing you have missed.” 

“No,” said Mr. Jenkins, sadly, “I don’t know as 
Tommy ever heard me pray in my home, or saw me 
read the Bible either.” 

“I can remember” said Tommy, “when I was a very 
little boy that you used to read in the Bible and kneel 
down and pray, and I have often wondered why you 
didn’t do the same now.” 

“1 think you had better take up family worship 
again, my brother,” said Mr. Moncrief, gently. 

“I think 1 ought to live a better Christian,” said Mr. 
Jenkins, earnestly; “I know my wife would like to have 
me establish family prayer again and I believe I will,” he 
said with decision. 

“Thank God,” said Mr. Moncrief, almost to himself, 
and then he continued, addressing Mr. Jenkins: “May 
the Lord bless you in doing your duty there. But now 
let us look again at what we have been talking about 
this evening as well as a number of other evenings. I 
think you will acknowledge that the Bible does teach a 
great deal about giving. It is our duty to give, our priv 


HILLSIDE. 


87 


liege to give, and that we are responsible to God, how, 
and how much we give, and while J do not believe that 
a tenth is the maximum that a Christian should give, 
and we do not have a hard and fast rule that we must 
do that, yet it is a good rule to work to until you can go 
beyond it.” 

“Waal, I don’t think it would make much difference 
in my giving,” said Mr. Jenkins, “for I think I give 
pretty near a tenth now.” 

“Do you keep any account of what you do give?” 
asked Mr. Moncrief. 

“No,” said Mr. Jenkins, “I don’t; I don’t think it is 
worth while. I give to most everything that comes 
along and I guess I give about a tenth.” 

“Do you have a separate place or separate purse for 
the Lord’s portion ?” asked Mr. Moncrief. 

“No, I don’t, do you?” asked Mr. Jenkins. 

“Yes, I do,” said Mr, Moncrief, earnestly, “and we 
have had for many years and no inducement could make 
me go back to the slipshod method of not knowing how 
much we rendered to the Lord. 

“Now, continued Mr. Moncrief, “you better try lay- 
ing aside one-tenth of all your income and putting it in 
a separate place and using that for the Lord’s work.” 

“Oh, 1 don’t know; it’s too much bother,” said Mr. 
Jenkins. 

“Not if the Lord and Master wants you to,” said Mr. 
Moncrief earnestly. 

“Father, didn’t you say,” interposed Tommy, “that 
you would live up to the verses in the New Testament?” 

Mr. Jenkins twisted in his chair rather uneasily and 
glancing at the clock looked as though he was on the 
point of saying: “its time to go home.” Tommy was de- 
termined his father should not get off as easily as that, 
so he' persisted: 


88 


HILLSIDE. 


“You might as well own up, Father, that you did say 
you would live up to the New Testament and so you bet- 
ter begin and practice the stewardship that we have been 
hearing about, for if that is true, and we cannot deny it, 
I don’t believe you have been a very faithful steward.” 

“Yes,” said Mr. Moncrief, “try it for a year if you 
cannot decide it for life.” 

“Waal, 1 will,” said Mr. Jenkins, decidedly, “al- 
though 1 reckon it won’t make much difference with my 
givin’.” 

“It will be easy for you,” said Mr. Moncrief, for you 
own your farm and you will not have to exempt any of 
your income for interest on borrowed capital.” 

“Oh, yes, I own my farm, but there are the taxes that 
have to be paid every year and then I must also take out 
money to run the house, before 1 give the Lord the 
tenth. 

“Musn’t I?” said Mr. Jenkins earnestly. 

“Certainly not,” said Tommy, Charlie and Mr. Mon- 
crief all in a breath. After the laugh which followed 
this outbreak had subsided, Mr. Moncrief said: 

“Our minister gets four hundred dollars a year which 
doesn’t much more than provide the necessities of life for 
himself and family. Perhaps at the end of the year he 
puts ten dollars in the bank. Reasoning the way you 
have just been talking, he would give one tenth of that 
ten dollars, or one dollar, where now he gives over forty 
a year.” 

“Waal, 1 think he gives too much,” said Mr. Jenkins 
quickly. 

“Well,” said Mr. Moncrief, “I am not the judge of 
that; he believes in doing that way, and he believes he 
gets along better with God’s blessing and the nine- tenths 
than if he selfishly should use the ten-tenths, but I only 
used that as an illustration to show that if you began to 
reserve a part that shouldn’t be tithed, then others 


HILLSIDE. 


m 


could also do the same and not give much of anything. 
No, your income should all be tithed, pension, and all.’ 5 

“My income,” said Mr. Jenkins,” doesn’t come in so 
much every month. If it did, it would be easy enough, 
but mine comes in by driblets, and then a bunch perhaps. 
Now, how shall I get at it ?” 

“There are two ways,” said Mr. Moncrief . 

“You could keep account of everything that comes 
in and also of how much you pay out for the Lord’s work 
and at the end of the year balance the account. * Then 
there is another way which I think is really a better plan 
and that is to lay aside In a separate place ten cents out 
of every dollar that comes in; then you will have a fund 
for all of the departments of the Lord’s work and your 
fund will rarely be exhausted, as you use that money 
wisely in the Lord’s work, praying for guidance to use 
the Lord’s money the best way, for His glory.” 

“But our groceries are bought, many of them, with 
butter and eggs. How do you mark that ?” 

“Easily enough,” said Mr. Moncrief. “Just let your 
wife give every tenth pound of butter and every tenth 
egg to the minister, if he has no cow or doesn’t keep hens. 
If he does keep hens and has a cow, she can sell the but- 
ter and eggs and then lay by the tenth of the price of 
each, and then she will have something to give to the 
Lord’s causes as they are seen by her. Ob, it is easy 
enough if any ones wishes, the main thing is to want 
to do it.” 

“Waal,” said Mr. Jenkins, “if I get considerable of the 
Lord’s money, I suppose I could use that to pay for Mabel’s 
music lessons, or to send Tommy to school couldn’t I ?” 

“Would a faithful steward do that?” said Mr. Mon- 
crief gently, “wouldn’t he be supposed to educate his own 
children out of his nine-tenths?” 

“I guess you are right,” said Mr. Jenkins slowly. 
“But supposing a man didn’t own much of anything, or 


90 


HILLSIDE. 


only owned a part of his farm, so was deeply in debt, and 
was struggling to extricate himself, how should he do 
then ?” 

“As I look at it,” said Mr. Moncrief ; “the debt to God, 
of a part of our income, is the first debt, and we must pay 
our first debt first, and then God can wonderfully bless us 
in paying our debts, but if we ignore His claims, we 
shall have up-hill work paying our other debts, for the 
Bible plainly says: ‘Seek ye first the Kingdom of God 
and His righteousness and all these things shall be added 
unto you,’ and I believe it implicitly. The reason why 
so many men have such a hard time financially is because 
they ignore God and no man can do it and prosper right 
along. God is very merciful and very patient with peo- 
ple, and He does bless them, more than one man would 
another, if we treated men the way we treat God.” 

“Waal, I said 1 would try laying aside a tenth and I 
will for one year, but I won’t promise for more than one 
year, and now I think it is time for us to be goinghome,” 
said Mr. Jenkins. 

“Wait a minute,” said Mr. Moncrief, “let us thank the 
Lord for the two resolutions that have been made here 
to-night and let us ask the Lord to give you strength and 
grace to live up to them.” 

They all knelt in prayer, while Mr. Moncrief rever- 
ently and feelingly thanked the Great Father for all of 
His blessings, and for the way Mr. Jenkins had been 
guided in his investigation of the word of truth, and im- 
plored divine strength for him, to enable him to live up 
to his new resolutions. 

Mr. Jenkins uttered a fervent amen at the conclusion 
of the petition. 


CHAPTER XII 

SUGARING OFF. 

“It is not very late,” said Charlie, “and as this maybe 
our last evening together for some time, we thought you 
would remain a little while longer and give Laura a taste 
of a genuine Xew England sugaring-off.” 

“Oh, well, I don’t mind,” said Mr. Jenkins, “but how 
long will it take ?” 

“Only a short time,” said Mrs. Monerief, “for we 
planned this, and so we have had the syrup in a kettle on 
the stove simmering away all the evening, and now if we 
pour it out into a sap pan it will not take long to have it 
ready to sugar off.” 

Soon the syrup was bubbling and foaming in the pan 
on the stove, while it was carefully watched, stirred and 
skimmed. Charlie had slipped out of the room 
when the mixture began to boil and now returned with 
two big milk pans full of snow, upon which, when it was 
thick enough, they proceeded to spread some of the boil- 
ing syrup and then when it was cool they ate it. It was 
delicious, a kind of maple candy. Laura had never 
eaten anything like it and she appreciated it very much. 

After every one had eaten all they wished of this 
wax or candy and the pieces on the snow being brittle, 
this signifying that the boiling mass was ready to sugar 
off, a board was placed on the table, the pan was hoisted 
from the stove and deposited on the board. Then the 
mass was stirred until it stopped boiling, when two or 
three people began to dip out the hot liquid sugar into 
fancy little tins that had just been taken out of cold 
water. 


92 


HILLSIDE. 


After the tins were all filled the balance was stirred 
and allowed to make dry sugar. In a few minutes the 
sugar in the tins becoming solid and partly cool they 
were taken from the tins and laid on the table to further 
cool off. 

“My,” said Laura, “what beautiful sugar. I never 
saw any as white as this is; 1 have seen some sugar out 
in Illinois, but that was so much darker than this. What 
is the reason for that ?” 

“This is pretty near the first run, you know, and 
that is always whiter than it is afterward,” said Charlie, 
and then with our tin buckets and galvanized iron spiles 
and tin pans everything is a great deal cleaner than it 
used to be fifty years ago and so it is nicer and whiter.” 

“Well, I have had a sweet time,” said Mr. Jenkins, 
“and I guess we better be going now.” 

“All right,” said Mr. Moncrief heartily, “I will not 
detain you any longer, but I am glad you came and glad 
you stopped to give Laura a sight that she won’t forget 
right away.” 

“I am glad I came too,” said Mr. Jenkins, as he 
started out for his team. 

As they were stowing themselves into the double 
sleigh Mrs. Moncrief appeared at the door with a good-sized 
parcel in her hands. “I will ask Laura to take this par- 
cel with her out west to make sure she does not forget 
this evening right away.” 

“Oh, thank you,” said Laura warmly, “but I don’t 
think I shall ever forget this visit,” and she glanced at 
Charlie. 

“Well good night all,” sang out the hearty voice of 
Mr. Jenkins after they were all nicely tucked in, and 
amidst goodnights and goodbyes on both sides the spir- 
ited horses sped away. 

“Well, thank God!” said Mr. Moncrief, after he had 
had entered the house, “this evening’s resolutions will 


HILLSIDE. 


93 


mean a great deal in that home; no one will know him 
m a year from now as the Mr. Jenkins we have known 
if he is faithful to the two pledges made here tonight, 
and I believe and trust he will be.” 

“I trust so, too,” said Charlie, “for it will mean a 
great deal for Tommy. I am praying that the Lord 
may open his eyes and bring him to Christ and I believe 
He will yet.” 


CHAPTER XIII. 

A YEAR AFTER. 

T WELVE months had rolled around bringing few 
changes to the people around Hillside. Time 
seemed to touch our friends of the preceding chapters 
gently, so that they seemed to be growing young instead 
of old and seemed to be happier as the days went by. 

Every one had noticed some subtle, quiet change in 
Mr. Jenkins but none the less remarkable because quiet. 
He and his family were at church every Sunday, not 
only in the morning but also in the evening. Then the 
mid-week prayer-meeting always finds him there ready 
to speak or pray in a way that helps people. Covenant 
meeting also has his presence regularly. 

Then he has doubled his subscription to the pastor’s 
salary a number of times and he likewise gives a gen- 
erous amount to every missionary object. 

Charlie Moncrief wrote a letter about this time to 
Laura in which he told so many things about Mr. Jen- 
kins that we take the liberty of quoting it. 

“I have told you in my occasional letters some 
things about Mr. Jenkins and the changes that every one 
has noticed in him. I wish you could have been here 
and heard him last Saturday at the covenant meeting. 
He came in with a smiling, happy face, and Tommy, 
Mabel and Mrs. Jenkins with him, and I never saw 


94 


HILLSIDE. 


Tommy in a covenant meeting before and I was aston- 
ished. There was a good Jarge company at the meeting 
that day, a few more than usual. We had very good, 
earnest singing, many fervent prayers and very excellent 
testimonies. Mr. Jenkins seemed to be feeling deeply, 
for every once in a while a tear would steal down his 
cheek, but his face was shining. He waited until most 
of the others had taken part and then he rose to his 
feet; the first thing he said was: ‘Praise Hod’! Then he 
couldn’t say any more for a minute; then, ‘Thank the 
Lord!’ he ejaculated; ‘He has been so good to me all my 
life. He has wonderfully blessed me, and now I feel 
as though my cup runneth over. ‘Friends,’ and here he 
paused to wipe his eyes and blow his nose: ‘I guess we 
nave got time and so 1 want to tell you something. 
Some of you know some of it but I guess no one knows 
it all, so I will tell it. 

‘As I look back one year I can hardly believe I am 
the same man. Well I am the same man an’ yet Pm not, 
praise the Lord! A year ago I was controlled by self; 
now, I trust, I am controlled by Christ. You remember 
the sermon that our pastor, there, preached a year ago 
last Sunday with its solemn question: “Will a man rob 
God?” I was purty well stirred up that day an’ almost 
angry with the minister. Then the Lord used my boy 
to keep me stirred up until I learned some of the teach- 
ings of that blessed Word of God on the subject of 
giving. I finally, after a hard struggle, promised I 
would try tithing and family worship for a year. The 
family worship was hard at first, but finally became a 
great blessing to me and I think to my whole family. 

‘But tithing! my, that was hard, and I had no idea it 
would be, but how my old natur’ did squirm, for I didn’t 
realize until then how much I loved my money.’ (You 
see, Laura, I am giving you some of his own words and 
phrases so that you may get the full force of them.) 


HILLSIDE. 


95 


“ ‘The first money that I got after I had agreed to 
give, or pay the Lord a tenth, was ten dollars for some 
cord wood that I had been hauling off over to the railroad 
station. I took one dollar out of that ten and laid it by. 
1 did it gladly and joyously and I thought how nice and 
easy it was; there is not much to that. I was proud of 
my own goodness, that made it so easy for me to do that. 
The next day after that I sold my apples. They were so 
cheap in the fall that I didn’t sell them and I was begin- 
ning to get anxious about them, it was. so near spring, 
but apples had been going up all winter, so I had been 
in no hurry to sell mine before, but 1 sold them then for' 
$2.25 a barrel for first quality and a dollar a barrel for 
second quality, and I had a hundred barrels of first quality 
and twenty-five of second, that made $250. I had planned 
to buy some steers with a part of the money and put the 
rest of it in the bank, but the first thing I was met with 
the thought 1 must give twenty-five dollars to the Lord. 
I first thought I couldn’t do it and I wouldn’t do it. Why 
said I to myself, what shall I do with that much money. 
That is more than I have ever given to the Lord in a 
whole year before. My wife made some remark about a 
good steward; then it all came back to me with great 
force, an’ I sat down and counted out twenty-five dollars 
an’ laid it away. But, oh, how my natur’ did squirm. I 
didn’t want to give that to the Lord; I coveted it; I 
almost worshipped' it it seems to me now. For a number 
of days I thought about it so much, and wanted to go an’ 
take the money back so much, that I thought that I had 
better get rid of it lively, so I put five dollars into the 
basket for the minister the next Sunday morning and it 
was the time for the foreign mission that day an’ I put 
in five dollars where I had usually put in five cents, or at 
the most ten cents. Actually, I began to enjoy putting 
the money to its uses. The wrench w r as in laying it by in 
the first place. There didn’t much more money come in, 


96 


HILLSIDE. 


excepting in little bits, for some time. 1 won't dwell on 
it in all its particulars, for it would weary you. It is too 
long a story. I have a little pension of eight dollars a 
month and I draw it at one time. That made ten dollars 
more for the Lord. I squirmed a little more, but not so 
much as at the first. It kept growing easier and easier, 
until lately I have positively enjoyed laying away the 
tenth, and lately I have been adding quite a little to the 
Lord’s tenth for an offering to God for His wonderful 
goodness to me the past year and His marvelous patience 
with me when I was an unjust steward, continually 
° robbing God. 

I can say that 1 now positively enjoy seeing the con- 
tribution box coming toward me, but I didn’t use to 
enjoy it. Now there is always something in the Lord’s 
treasury for the Lord’s work. 

This has been a marvelous year for me, temporally 
and spiritually. I never have been so blessed in my life. 
I recommend this way to everyone, with large income or 
small, as a standard to work to. Not that I believe a 
tenth is nearly enough to pay the Lord, but it is a good 
thing to have a standard, especially to begin with. I 
intend to keep right on laying aside a tenth to pay to the 
Lord, and besides the tenth I intend to do a good deal of 
giving, for 1 have come ’round to the belief that 1 don’t 
begin to give until after 1 have rendered one tenth to the 
Lord. 

I intend to be a good steward. I have learned that 
the Lord takes care of the income and It isn’t for me to 
worry or fret about crops, but simply to do the work 
well and use the income wisely that the Lord commits to 
me. In the years of my stingy Christianity — if a stingy 
man can be a Christian, which I somewhat doubt — I 
never seemed to be very anxious for the conversion of 
my children. I thought more of saving a dollar than I 
did of saving a soul and so Tommy here had no respect 


HILLSIDE. 


97 


for my religion if I had any. JBut 1 have been very 
anxious for my children lately. I Lave been praying a 
great deal for them and I have said a few words to them 
so that now they have both given their hearts to the 
Lord and wish to unite with the church. I praise God 
for his goodness.- I thank Him that He ever inspired our 
pastor to preach from that solemn question, ‘Will a man 
rob God?’ and that he ever used it to stir me up and lead 
me to undertake this blessed way of living. 1 wouldn’t 
go back to the old niggardly, slip-shod way of living and 
giving for all I am worth in this world.’ 

“Then he sat down and wiped his eyes and most 
everyone was smiling and crying together. Then Mr. 
Powell started the song, ‘All hail the power of Jesus’ 
name.’ Every one joined in with a will and how the 
music did roll out. A great sense of God’s goodness and 
power filled their souls as they realized that here were 
some more trophies of God’s grace and power. 

“As soon as the song ceased Tommy Jenkins was on 
his feet and with wet eyes and a shining face, he said: 

‘I too, want to praise God to-day. This is the first 
time I have ever praised Him in public. I yielded myself 
to Him unreservedly last night and 1 know He has for- 
given my sins and accepted me for Christ’s sake; and I 
thank Him and I intend by His help to live for Him 
fully. 1 intend to obey Him in all things. To that end 
I wish to unite with His people. Perhaps I had better 
tell you a little of my experience. You all know me, as I 
was born up here on the farm and have lived there ever 
since. You know my life and you know how I used to 
rather go to a dance than to church and 1 had rather play 
cards than study my Sunday school lesson. I used to 
attend church considerable of the time and Sunday school 
a part of the time, but I didn’t believe in religion, or not 
in some people’s religion. I wasn’t very old when I dis- 
covered there were grades in religion, or different kinds, 


98 


HILLSIDE 


or something. I believed in my mother’s religion, but I 
didn’t believe in my father’s for I didn’t believe he had 
any, any more than I had, and 1 knew I didn’t have any. 
1 thought I would stand just as good a show before God 
as he did, but I think I misjudged him, for I think he 
was a Christian, but not such a one as he is now. Most 
of you are somewhat familiar with our talks and discus- 
sions of a year ago on the subject of giving. I mostly 
begun those talks to see whether father did care for the 
Bible or not and whether he would live up to the teach- 
ings of the Bible. I used to wonder why father never 
had family prayer nor ever spoke to me on the subject of 
religion. If religion was all he proclaimed it to be, it 
seemed as though he didn’t care if I went to the bad and 
I was going just as fast as the evil one and I could take 
me. But this last year things have been decidedly differ- 
ent, with family worship, a blessing at every meal, kind- 
ness instead of harshness, liberality toward the Lord’s 
work instead of stinginess; five dollars for a benevolence 
where five cents used to do. I tell you that took hold of 
me and I also found father was a great deal happier than 
I had ever seen him before. I made up my mind there 
was something in religion after all, for a power that could 
so transform father must be a mighty power. I saw I 
was a sinner and Christ was a mighty Saviour, able and 
willing to save me completely if 1 would let Rim. I con- 
fessed my sins and He has washed them away and now, 
by His grace, 1 want to live fully for Him. Pray for me.’ 

“Then he sat down and we all sang heartily, ‘Praise 
God from whom all blessings flow.’” 

“Mabel Jenkins then told her experience. It seems 
she has been a Christian for some time. Thanks to her 
mother’s influence. They will be baptized^ soon in the 
little lake amongst the hills— the same place where I was 
baptized, and you remember we slid on to the edge of the 
lake that day you were with us when I began to tap trees 
a little over a year ago. 


HILLSIDE. 


99 


“I tell you, Laura that was a great day, that Covenant 
meeting day. J was so glad and thankful, for you know 
Tommy is one of my great friends, and he is a smart fel- 
low, how could he help it, being your cousin ? This is no 
little matter with Tommy for there is no half way 
business with him. I believe he is going to serve the Lord 
just as heartily and earnestly as he served the evil* one, 
and so he will be a power for good, for he has been the 
leader in all kinds of amusements, that, to say the least 
about them, do not tend to lead any one to Christ. I have 
written a great deal longer letter than I intended, but this 
is of such interest that I felt as though I must write you 
all about it, not but what I expected you would hear 
about it from your cousins, but they might not go into the 
details as 1 have. I wish you were here to enjoy another 
sugaring-off. I hope you will be sometime.” 


CHAPTER XIV. 

MISS PETERS’ CONFESSION. 

M ISS Caroline Peters had been busy during this event- 
ful year, coming and going amongst the families 
of the community, as they needed her services. Busy was 
she in fashioning, , shaping and changing all sorts of gar- 
ments and her tongue was also busy. 

One day when she was at home, after the spring rush 
of work, she stepped in next door to have a little chat 
with Mrs. Jones, who greeted her cordially, saying: “I am 
very glad you came in; I have not seen you, only at 
church, for a long time. How are you, and how is the 
world using you ?” 

“Oh, nicely, nicely,” said Miss Peters briskly. “I have 
had plenty of work and that is a blessing. I have also 
had strength to work, for which I am thankful. But I 
have come to tell you something and to make a confes- 


L.ofC. 


100 


HILLSIDE. 


sion. You know I used to go up to Mr. Jeakins one day 
a year, usually; rarely two, and help cut over some old 
dresses ana occasionally help make a new one. I used to 
be so disgusted with Mr. Jenkins and his stinginess, 
that, as I have told you many a time, if that ‘was Chris- 
tianity I did not want any of it, but I have always 
kno\#n the truth of the saying that each one was respon- 
sible for his own life and actions; as that old colored 
woman quaintly put it: “Every tub must stand on its 
own bottom,” and I looked at the worst Christians in- 
stead of the best to find fault with them which I knew 
all the time was not right in me. Well 1 was up there 
for a week last fall sewing new garments and old, and 
now I have just come from there, or at least I was up 
there all last week, and I want to tell you the Lord has 
made a tremendous change in that man and in his 
home. There was no praying done in that home that I 
could ever see when 1 was there, and there was no bles- 
sing asked at the table and there were no religious pa- 
pers of any kind. 

“Now they have a blessing asked at every meal, and, 
think of it! that wild, reckless Tommy takes turns with 
his father in asking a blessing. Then they have family 
worship every night and morning in which they take 
turns; or else they all join, as is often the case, and I was 
astonished to lind a number of religious papers as well as 
numerous missionary magazines and Mr. Jenkins read 
them a great deal, and seemed to be greatly interested in 
the Lord’s work all over the world. 

“Mr. Jenkins is just as good a farmer as he ever was 
and I am not sure but what he had even better horses and 
cattle than he used to have, but he did not mention them 
but once or twice while I was there all last week, and 
that used to be his main topic of conversation, and the 
Lord and His work wasn’t talked about at all, unless it was 
to criticize some church member, or to find fault with 


HILLSIDE. 


101 


something Mr. Powell had said. I did not hear him 
criticize any member or the pastor once last week. In- 
stead of that, he was talking of the Lord’s work all over 
the world, in India, China, Africa and also all parts of 
our own country. He prayed a great deal for the minister 
and the church here at Hillside, and for our state and 
nation. I have discovered who made the minister’s wife 
a life member of the Poreign Missionary Society, and also 
who gave that nice set of books to the minister at 
Christmas. You remember it said on the card, ‘From 
friends who appreciate the work of our pastor.’ They 
did not intend to let me know of it, I suppose and prob- 
ably they do not realize that I know it, but I do.” 

“Last Friday evening I thought I would ask Mr. 
Jenkins a few questions, that had been puzzling me. He 
seemed so good naturedand happy, I thought he wouldn’t 
mind, so I got ready and said: ‘Mr. Jenkins, what makes 
the difference between you now, and as you used to be ?” 

“Why, is there any difference ?” he said, as innocent 
as could be. 

“Well I should say so,” said I with energy. “You 
are no more like the Mr. Jenkins that I used to know 
than I am like your wife.” 

“Have I changed for the better or the worse,” said 
Mr. Jenkins with a sly twinkle in his eye. 

“Changed for the better or worse,” I repeated with 
emphasis. “Don’t you know?” 

“Well I rather mistrust,” said he, “and I think it is 
for the better, I feel better anyway. But can you see any 
difference ?” 

“Well, Mr. Jenkins,” said I, “you are no more like 
what you were a year and a half ago than black is like 
white. Why, I was so disgusted with you at that time 
that if you had been the last man in the world and you 
had offered me all you had in this world, your big farm 
and all, I would not have been your wife. But now! 


102 


HILLSIDE. 


Well I think your wife must enjoy life.’ Mrs. Jones* you 
ought to have seen him laugh; it would have done you 
good. Finally, after sometime, he stopped laughing and 
I said, “what has brought about this change?” 

“The Lord,” said he solemnly and joyously. 

“Yes,” said 1 rather interrogatively, for I wanted him 
to go and explain. 

“Yes, thank the Lord, He did it and 1 praise Him,” 
said Mr. Jenkins, “but He used Elder Powell and that 
solemn question, ‘Will a man rob God?’ first to stir me 
up and get me almost angry, and then He used Tommy 
here to keep me stirred up. You have heard, of course, 
about our Bible studies?” 

“Yes, I have,” I said. “You remember, don’t you 
Mrs. Jones, that I said at Jthe time of that sermon, that I 
should think it would make some of the church members 
squirm; and so it did you see. Well it is wonderful the 
way God works, sometimes. But there is one other thing 
about Mr. Jenkins I must tell you. 1 asked him why he 
didn’t talk about his farm and horses and cattle as he 
used to do. “Don’t you care anything about them now?” 
said I. 

“Sartinly, sartinly,” said he. “Well, then, why don’t 
you talk about them now?” “We are told in the Divine 
word,” he answered, “ ‘Love not the world, nor the things 
that are in the world; if any man love the world, the love 
of the Father is not in him;’ we are also told ‘Set your 
affections on things above, not on things of the earth ;’ 
and again, ‘Seek first the Kingdom of God and His 
righteousness, and all these things shall be added unto 
you.’ So you see the first in thought, in talk, in deed, 
must be given to the Lord and His work, and the farm 
and stock must take the place that they belong in, name- 
ly, the secondary place, and if we elevate them to the first 
place, we disobey God, and we shall be barren, niggardly 
Christians— just what I was— but thank the Lord I am 


HILLSIDE. 


103 


not now. 1 have so much of the Lord’s work to talk 
about that I do not find time or inclination to talk a 
great deal about these temporal things.” 

“I told Mr. Jenkins then, what 1 came over here to 
tell you now, and that is this: I said a year ago, that if 
you were a Christian I did not think I wanted any 
Christianity, although I knew all the time that that would 
not excuse me, but now I say that I want the same re- 
ligion that you and your family have. Mr. Jenkins was 
glad and he said ‘I hope you will find the pure religion of 
the Lord.’ 

“That night I yielded my heart to the Lord and now 
I want to serve Him faithfully, and J am going to try to 
be a faithful steward in all things. I expect one of my 
hardest battles will be to bring my tongue into subjection 
to the will of Christ. I shall have to pray the Psalmist’s 
prayer very often ‘Set a watch, O Lord, at the door of my 
lips, that I sin not against thee.' 

“I realize now, as J never did before, that I do sin 
against God when I talk about His people the way I have 
done.” 

“I am so glad,” Mrs. Jones answered, “that you have 
given your heart to the Lord. I have prayed for you a 
great deal.” 

“I suppose you will unite with the church soon?” 
said Mrs. Jones. 

“Oh, yes,” said Miss Peters, “I believe it the duty and 
privilege of every Christian to unite with God’s people, 
andl intend to doso very soon. Did you think,” continued 
Miss Peters, “how many there are in the church that are 
now giving at least a tenth to the Lord.” 

“No,” said Mrs. Jones, “I am sure I don’t know how 
many there are. I know that we have begun just lately 
to lay by a tenth, and we eD joy it.” 

“Well I didn’t know you had begun it. I am glad, 
knew I had just begun it, and I am not a member of the 


104 


HILLSIDE. 


church yet. But there are quite a number besides us. 
Mr. Kilpatrick and family over north have recently be- 
gun; then over on the big hill Mr. Defane and Lamb’s 
people have begun it since Mr. Jenkins’ testimony in 
covenant meeting, for they told me so. Then Mr. 
Jenkins’ whole family, and you know that Tommy and 
Mabel each have some wages; then Mr. Moncrief’s family 
and Elder Powell’s family have practiced it for some 
years I guess. I know Mr. Moncrief’s family have 
practiced it since before Charlie was born and that must be 
about twenty years. Yes, I remember Charlie comes of 
age next December.” 

“Oh, by the way, speaking about Charlie, reminds 
me of Laura. Y ou remember her ? W ell the indications 
are, that she may come back here some time to live, and 
perhaps before long, for she and Charlie have corres- 
ponded regularly since she went back to Illinois, and 
something was said the last time I was there, that makes 
me think Charlie contemplates a trip out west before 
long. Well, Laura is a fine girl, an active Christian and 
will be a great help in our church. There has been a 
great work of God around here in the last year and a 
half’ continued Miss Peters. ‘What changes have taken 
place and one of the most wonderful is that I have found 
the Lord, after living so many years in sin.” 

“Truly, what hath God wrought.” 

“Yes,” said Mrs. Jones, “how wonderful it is. Truly, 
‘God moves in a mysterious way His wonders to perform.’ ” 


THE END. 


















































0*0 


9 I 1 


5 \. aO > 

% / 4V/K; ^ ** * 
>V « a™ , vv 


NJ 


v v ^ ® * 0 A N 

v • 

*■ *P ► 

^ a* ♦ 


* \ l %Ws • v 

' ,o v o 'o . , ■* a -e ■ 

°o ' .<& ^ 



o 

A ^ O 

<,v ^ ° 

0 o '« . * 4 A <\ 

* ** ' * * o g °"°* ^ 

' j & mt ?*: ° <r *\*5$SW* 

* &\u//sy> * v>\ <-& o 


<> o? ■ 

* ^ / 
w .. 

. ^ %. “o 

* " <£* * 1 

4 * 6 , " 
ef . ‘ Xt* „ °0 



< 9 * »* * »- *> V *■" 

<* c-r .>W/k v ■»* **»KV. 

XT ^ <X\\ / y^///? o *>* , 


., vv *£*• 


»■•"■■• .v^>. i X 
» wX X *s-. . e 


/ 0 


* ^ <£ * rfCv gf A°o ^ A* * 

:«m* va* ° 

* ^r ^ •„ 

^ *<>.** A <V **7Vi* ,0 > C> -o„ A 

A> « M „ 'As ^ _ l I 6 *Pl 




S ° 
/ ^y ** °. 




N 0 


4 0 * 

O %-P 


0 N O ^ '<$> 

^ *P 
* ’T>v 

: . ^ o^ 

* "" iP^ 

^ °^ '*■> «'° 9 a 0 

\> v * s VI '* c\ 4 <y „ v . o 

•• <•- •♦ ••■^••- \ / .• 




O 

» -0? &■ O 

' *V <*v * 





a\ %* * * 

c ° " ° * 

* c x^K * 'T* 

\ v ^NNXW^ * ^ 




^P 

* o 
+ o 

\>-* , A 
o V 

o <0 V\ 

+ ^ywxvv' * >► v> * 

O ^ ^ j + 

<V °*t» " 0 « ° 0 a 0 o> *•'■>"’ ■$ 

»‘V^* c\ <<y *’*«* > O' % 

'JScsWPr^* * * e^ 55 . * .a /t r *, 





4 O. 

-AS 



* aV-* -* 
'/ £ <$• • 





»' r,* 



I o 


vP 

vP- ° 

^ o 

rp •<}&■* v v 

^ '°“' A^ <> *' * • 5 

• * C5 <& c o * <j . *V> 

O j'B’ * * *r 

-» \N <i <5N\V\1' 1 % vr> 

: ^v* -: 411 a*. ++# 

o \P *7\ 

> v * <^sy//i\)3? N v 

jy .**»> > v 1 ^ s " 

x f R 5 i * -v . t 

C^- '■MOj,’. ^ * 

<=- > s ^ •». 

<A ^ 0 

° - ^ *0 » t / 0 ^ o A v 

•- -.» „ c t / ..• 





O '•'« - ■ * 




° * A 






4 O . 



JiJN P 


K jlO a> v v 


N MANCHESTER, 
INDIANA 





_ ° o 







